
Advancing Mining Processes to Make Better Materials for Use in Lithium Ion Batteries
American Manganese Inc has developed a low-cost, environmentally friendly hydrometallurgical process to recover manganese (Mn) from lower grade resources. American Manganese has applied for a patent for their hydrometallurgical process that produces electrolytic manganese metal with low energy and water consumption. American Manganese commissioned R&D contractor, Kemetco Research Inc to determine uses of Artillery Peak manganese resource material to generate high value alternative products. Chemical manganese dioxide (CMD) and lithiated manganese oxide (LixMn2O4) for use in rechargeable batteries were the areas researched.
The research was successful in producing CMD from Artillery Peak resource material with low cation impurities and avoiding processing steps that are known to introduce metallic impurities in the final product. Cation impurities cause capacity fade, whereas metallic impurities are known to cause catastrophic failures (such as fire and explosions) in lithium ion batteries. Working rechargeable lithium ion coin cell battery prototypes were produced from the CMD material.
This webinar will focus on the following key topics:
• Catastrophic failure of Li Ion batteries caused by metallic impurities that may be introduced from the mining of raw materials
• Conventional mining process to recover MnO2 used to make LiMn2O4
• Research on a new mining process that avoids steps known to introduce metallic impurities to recover MnO2 used to make LiMn2O4
Presenter
Norman Chow – President – Kemetco Research, Inc.
Norman earned a B.A.Sc. and M.A.Sc. in Metals and Materials Engineering from University of British Columbia. He is a Registered Professional Engineer (P. Eng.) in British Columbia. He has over 15 years of technology development and contract research experience. He is the President of Kemetco Research Inc., which he formed after acquiring the Industrial Process Division of BC Research Inc. BC Research had been in operation for over 60 years as an R&D contractor.
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Energy Storage RTE Tutorial Course 1/3: What is Round Trip Efficiency (RTE)? Why is it Important? How Much Does it Cost?
In the first of this three-part webinar series, a definition of RTE will be presented along with simple system equations that are important to its understanding, determination and management. RTE for some popular battery systems i.e. Lead Acid, Lithium Ion, Vanadium Redox and Nickel Zinc will be computed as examples, and their variation with common variables such as rate, capacity variability & SOC swing will be discussed. The costs of Round Trip inefficiency can be significant, and are experienced by customers either in higher energy generating capital costs and/or higher operating expenses. The calculation of these higher costs will be reviewed, and there will be a discussion on the key industry variables that influence them. Different geographic and customer markets will be considered.
This webinar will focus on the following key topics:
• The Importance of RTE to battery selection decisions
• How does RTE impact CAPEX and/or OPEX for energy storage
• How is RTE defined and how can it be derived – comparison of different systems
• An introduction to ancillary equipment energy losses
Presenter
Dr. Halle Cheeseman – Founder/President at Energy Blues LLC
Dr. Halle Cheeseman earned a PhD in Electrochemistry & Corrosion from the University of Nottingham in UK, graduating in 1985. She has held several executive positions in the battery industry over the past 32 years, including Sr. VP of R&D at Spectrum Brands and VP of R&D at Exide Technologies. Her specific battery experience includes Lithium Ion, Zinc Air, Nickel Metal Hydride, Nickel Iron, Alkaline and Lead Acid, focusing on Consumer, Industrial, Automotive & Renewable Energy applications. In July 2017, Dr. Cheeseman founded Energy Blues LLC, an energy storage consulting cooperative comprising 20+ subject matter experts.
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Avoid Battery Explosions and Fires – With Right Data and Better Designs
Modern Li Ion batteries contain hazardous chemicals and heat up during use – this combination always has the potential to cause fires and explosions. This presentation will focus on improving the understanding of how such incidents occur, what can be done to avoid them and how the risk can be minimized during early stage design.
The solution lies in knowledge of the heat generation rate during normal use, and information about safe boundaries such as temperature, discharge rate & overcharge in realistic situations that represent actual conditions of use. Data from commercial batteries of different types, including videos of batteries undergoing thermal runaway, will be used to illustrate these points.
A relatively new technique will also be discussed with data, which allows total heat output during discharge to be measured on-line and this can be used both for design and battery modelling. Examples of the data will be provided.
This webinar will focus on the following key topics:
• Why battery fires and explosions occur
• How to design safer batteries through understanding of heat generation
• Video evidence of batteries under explosive conditions
• How better thermal management systems can be designed – based on heat measurement from isothermal calorimetry
• Laboratory instruments suitable for testing and data generation
Presenter
Dr. Jasbir Singh – Managing Director at Hazard Evaluation Laboratory
Jasbir is a chemical engineer specializing in thermal hazards and calorimetry, traditionally for the chemical industry but now increasingly involved in battery safety, especially Li-ion EV and related types.
A graduate of Imperial College (London), where he undertook PhD into combustion and explosions, his experience includes many years in process design for the chemical and petrochemical industries. He is currently developing test methods and instruments for use in design of battery thermal management systems.
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