Graphene for Automotive

Lyten and the Luxembourg Future Fund 2 (LFF2) have announced that LFF2 has made an equity investment into Lyten.

The investment in Lyten follows the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in October 2023 to establish Lyten’s European headquarters in Luxembourg. The investment highlights Luxembourg’s commitment to advancing clean technologies and incorporating them into the European economy. Through this partnership, Lyten and Luxembourg will collaborate on research and development and the introduction of several Lyten products into the European market including its lithium-sulfur EV battery.

An India-based EV startup called iVOOMi has launched the S1 Lite, an electric scooter available with two battery options, Graphene and Li-ion. 

The graphene unit offers a range of up to 75 km and takes 7-8 hours to charge fully, while the Li-ion pack provides a range of up to 85 km and can be charged in under 4 hours. Both variants feature a 1.2 kW motor with 1.8 kW peak power and 10.1 Nm of torque.

Solidion Technology, an advanced battery technology solutions provider, has announced its plan to begin expanding the production capacity of silicon-rich graphene composite materials in early 2025.

The amount of energy that a lithium-ion battery can supply to an electric vehicle (EV) is limited by the amount of charges stored in its anode and cathode materials. Although graphite has been the preferred anode material during the past 30 years, silicon oxide (SiOx) and silicon (Si) are two evolving anode materials capable of improving the energy density of EV batteries and extending the EV range by 20-40%. However, the higher-capacity gain of both silicon and silicon oxide is limited by the technical issue of large volume change-induced rapid capacity decay and processing difficulty. Solidion has targeted this technical obstacle and has established a Dayton, Ohio-based facility for manufacturing silicon oxide (SiOx) and silicon (Si). The Solidion team is ready to expand the production capacity for these two types of high-capacity anode materials.

Sparc Technologies has announced the commencement of ecosparc (its flagship graphene-based additive product) field trials with the South Australian Department for Infrastructure and Transport (DIT).

The steel piles for the Streaky Bay Jetty remediation project have been delivered to DIT for blasting and coating. Sparc has provided both the ecosparc-enhanced and control coating to DIT and agreed the arrangement of the steel piles on the project. 

Haydale recently displayed, for the first time in public, its revolutionary new solution to automotive seat heating labelled the ‘Hot Seat’ at the NEC in Birmingham. Using the Company's patented process and unique materials, Haydale has developed an alternative to existing automotive seat heating technology.

This interesting graphene application is based on the production of a seat heater that is faster to heat, uses less energy and offers a green and eco-friendly alternative to the current solutions. Using the same technology in place for their Underfloor Heating range of products under development, Haydale has now adapted this to provide a novel application for heated seating.

Levidian has suggested to use graphene as a way to address the environmental impact of tire wear in electric vehicles, as early-stage research it conducted showcases promising results in leveraging high-quality graphene to mitigate environmental concerns linked to tire wear in EVs.

The heavier weight and greater torque of EVs has been shown to accelerate tire degradation, leading to increased rubber particulates that contaminate the environment. The widespread adoption of silica-filled compounds in tire treads, aimed at improving abrasion properties, can exacerbate the issue by causing faster migration of toxic anti-ozonant additives, particularly 6PPD.

Lyten has announced it has shipped A samples of its 6.5 Ah (C/3 discharge rate, 25° C) lithium-sulfur pouch cells to Stellantis and other leading US and EU automotive OEMs for evaluation. Lyten is known for using Li-S cathode made of sulfur and its proprietary 3D Graphene, sourced by capturing carbon from methane. This is said to eliminate the need for critical minerals like nickel, cobalt, and manganese in the cathode. The Li-S anode is a lithium metal composite, eliminating the need for graphite. The Company explaines that elimination of critical minerals means a projected 65%+ lower carbon footprint than lithium-ion batteries and a supply chain that can be fully sourced in the US or EU at scale.

Lyten manufactures lithium-sulfur cells in both pouch and cylindrical formats (2170 and 18650) and is currently shipping the 6.5 Ah pouch cell format for customer evaluation. Later this year, Lyten plans to deliver cylindrical A samples for evaluation. Lyten’s lithium-sulfur format flexibility enables its use in a wide range of industries beyond automotive, including space, aerospace, drones, micromobility, defense and consumer electronics.

Levidian has unveiled its first prototype truck tire, combining graphene with carbon black in a new tread formulation. Launched this week at the Tire Technology Expo in Hannover, the graphene-enhanced natural rubber and butadiene rubber tire tread compound, typically used in commercial vehicle tires, has been shown to deliver significant improvements in the mechanical and dynamic properties of the tire.

Independent testing by the Tun Abdul Razak Research Centre (TARRC) has reportedly shown that the addition of Levidian’s 'net zero graphene' can deliver a reduction in rolling resistance of around 23%. Initial results have also indicated potential for reduced compound density that could allow for lighter tires overall. It was said that overall, this could deliver substantial improvements in fuel efficiency of 3-4%.  

Solidion Technology, an advanced battery technology solutions developer, began trading on NASDAQ (ticker symbol “STI”) on February 5, 2024. Solidion is the merged entity between Honeycomb Battery Company (HBC, Dayton, Ohio) and Nubia Brand International Co., a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), based in Dallas, Texas.

Some see electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft as the next urban transportation technology breakthrough. At the heart of an eVTOL aircraft is a heavy battery pack. The amount of energy that can be stored in a battery pack with a reduced mass must be significantly increased before the eVTOL industry can literally take off. It is estimated that eVTOL aircraft needs a battery system with a gravimetric energy density > 400 Wh/kg. For an air taxi to carry more passengers, a battery cell energy density higher than 450 or even 500 Wh/kg will be required.

Chrysler recently announced its Halcyon Concept electric vehicle, that plans to incorporate Lyten’s lithium-sulfur EV batteries as part of its goal to achieve a lighter weight and longer-range vehicle powered by batteries that utilize no nickel or cobalt.

Chrysler's Halcyon Concept EV. image credit: BusinessWire

Chrysler’s announcement states the Halcyon "envisions incorporating breakthrough Lyten 800V lithium-sulfur EV batteries that do not use nickel, cobalt or manganese, resulting in an estimated 60% lower carbon footprint than today's best-in-class batteries and a pathway to achieve the lowest emissions EV battery on the global market."