Technology Projects
Iondrive is developing three projects that address the shortcomings of LIBs.
IonDrive Technologies is excited to bring the most cutting-edge in energy storage technology from concepts on paper, through to full industrial scale production. The company’s primary focus is on developing and commercialising innovative solutions for lithium battery recycling. We promote the most promising solutions to real challenges – current and predicted, and prepare and present them to meet the needs of the future.
Hydrometallurgical Battery Recycling
Lithium battery recycling is currently extremely inefficient, hazardous, and costly. Most recycling is accomplished through incineration through extreme temperatures, or corrosion with powerful and toxic acids. Our Hydrometallurgical Battery Recycling project is built to provide a better solution.
With a patented environmentally-safe solvent, components of a battery such as lithium, nickel, cobalt, and manganese, can be gently separated without exposure to high temperature or corrosive acids.
Our Hydrometallurgical Battery Recycling project will improve the recovery process of expensive and scarce metals present in defunct batteries in several ways.
- Higher retention of resources, reducing the demand on destructive mining.
- Safer process, reducing the hazard to operators and damage to the environment.
- Less specialised equipment required, allowing for more localised operations, and resulting in more repossession of defunct batteries.
Aqueous Sodium Batteries
Our Aqueous Sodium Batteries will solve the increasing expense and scarcity caused by inefficient Lithium-ion batteries. Sodium energy storage has been heralded by scientists as the ideal alternative to lithium due to its stability, abundance, and excellent energy density. Better still, AqNa batteries can make full use of existing Li-ion battery production lines.
Our Aqueous Sodium Battery is designed with an electrolyte that increases the lifetime of the cell to be 7 times longer than modern lithium batteries and is significantly cheaper than any other AqNa battery. Additionally, our project includes the development of high-performance cathodes and highly reversible anodes specific to long-life and high-energy aqueous sodium batteries.
While AqNa batteries can replace Li-ion batteries in a wide range of applications, they are particularly suitable for energy storage in wind and solar farms due to their low cost and high energy density, enabling countries to meet carbon-neutral status in the future.
Designed as a viable replacement when safety, scale, and longevity are critical, AqNa batteries are expected to outperform the currently relied-upon Li-ion batteries in several significant ways.
- Significantly cheaper energy storage, made predominantly with inexpensive components.
- More stable in varying conditions, operating efficiently at low and high temperatures.
- Less volatile in the event of damage to the cell, and non-toxic.
- Longer life cycle, capable of operation for 14,000 cycles compared to 3,000 in Li-ion batteries.
- Core components are abundant in nature and will facilitate large scale production.
Safer Lithium Metal Batteries
Lithum-based batteries are currently the most efficient method to store energy on scale today and, until better options reach the market, developments to improve the safety and longevity of lithium cells are desperately needed.
Our Safer Lithium Metal Batteries project is developing patented surfacing technology to be coated on lithium metal for the anode to allow far higher energy density than possible in traditional lithium-ion batteries. We are also developing a patented non-flammable electrolyte and integrating recent technological advancements to improve the safety and lifecycle of lithium cells.
With our innovations, Li-ion batteries can reach the theoretical maximum for energy density, leading to many exciting possibilities. We may see car batteries capable of driving more than 1000km on a single charge and mobile phones that require charging only once per week.
Our Safer Lithium Metal Batteries will meet the challenges posed by a heavy reliance on lithium for our current and future energy storage needs.
- Increases the energy storage capacity by 2 to 3 times.
- Improved lifespan of batteries, reducing cost of replacement and lower demand on materials.
- Reduced hazard and cost in extinguishing extremely persistent lithium fires.
- Safer transportation and operation of energy storage devices.
