Nano One and Johnson Matthey team on lithium-ion

Nano One and Johnson Matthey have unveiled a joint development agreement for lithium-ion battery materials.

The companies will co-develop products and processes for Johnson Matthey’s eLNO family of nickel-rich cathode materials using Nano One’s One-Pot process and coated nanocrystal technology, for the production of lithium-ion battery cathode materials.  

JM maintains it has already made significant progress in the commercialisation of its family of nickel rich advanced cathode materials.

Nano One’s One-Pot process is designed to form a type of cathode material known as ‘coated single crystal,’ which can deliver increased durability. The process will also enable the materials to be made directly from metal powders and lithium carbonate to address cost, energy and sustainability objectives across the entire lithium-ion battery supply chain.

The agreement will focus on developing materials, methods of production and a commercialisation study for pre-pilot, pilot and scaled-up manufacturing. The agreement is the culmination of technical reviews and preliminary evaluations of both Nano One’s high nickel cathode materials and IP conducted during the past year.

“Johnson Matthey is a global leader in advanced lithium-ion cathode materials, and we are…working with them in the pursuit of high performance, long life cycles, low-carbon footprint and environmentally sustainable solutions,” said Nano One CEO, Dan Blondal.

“We share a common vision to develop and commercialise a highly differentiated and value-added cathode materials business and we are delighted to be introducing Johnson Matthey as a trusted partner and collaborating on process innovation for a new generation of lithium-ion battery materials.”

For his part, chief executive, Battery Materials at Johnson Matthey, Christian Gunther, added:

“We are encouraged by Nano One’s innovations and believe its technology has the potential to offer significant advantages in terms of product performance, sustainability and manufacturing cost for our eLNO family of cathode materials.”