Freudenberg safety separator supports the advance of e-mobility in Asia

Freudenberg Performance Materials will be presenting innovative high-performance separators with ceramic impregnation for lithium-ion batteries at the China International Battery Fair from May 24-26 in Shenzhen.

The expansion of e-mobility in China is an important building block for improving air quality in cities across the country. For the foreseeable future, the Chinese government will be promoting a number of projects, including those that encourage the expansion of e-mobility in public transport. In this context, ceramic-impregnated high-performance separators for lithium-ion batteries made by Freudenberg Performance Materials can provide important support. Due to their excellent safety performance and high reliability, they can also be adapted for use in stationary energy storage systems, such as solar energy. “Compared to conventional products, the Freudenberg safety separator offers decisive advantages. It significantly increases safety, is much more temperature-resistant and gives lithium-ion batteries a longer service life,” explains Dr. Frank Heislitz, chief technology officer, Freudenberg Performance Materials.

The safety separator consists of an ultra-thin PET nonwoven, impregnated with ceramic particles. It remains stable at temperatures of up to several hundred degrees Celsius and does not shrink. In comparison to conventional products, it is considerably less sensitive to mechanical stress, particularly at high temperatures. Another plus is that using the safety separator helps to reduce the production cost of lithium-ion batteries. Because higher temperatures can be used, preparation of the battery cells is accelerated by a faster drying process and increased speed of electrolyte impregnation.

From energy density to energy throughput and temperature range, the demands placed on batteries for applications in stationary energy storage systems are very different from those in electric vehicles. Each battery component must be individually selected for the specific application. However, all applications share one thing in common: the need to offer a high degree of safety and reliability while avoiding harming people and the environment. These are precisely the properties offered by the Freudenberg separator.

The separator has already been successfully tested in customer-developed high-energy cathode systems. Although these electrode materials promise a higher level of cell energy density and are particularly suitable for use in both cars and buses, they have not yet proved sufficiently reliable and safe. Using the Freudenberg separator has significantly reduced these problems.

At CIBF, Freudenberg will also be presenting the company’s separators for nickel batteries. Their advantages include a high uniformity in structure and thickness as well as tight pore radius distribution. The reliable separation of positive and negative electrodes and the labyrinth structure that acts as an effective barrier to dendrite growth, are further strengths of Freudenberg’s separators for nickel batteries.