GM, Argonne in accord on advanced battery chemistry

Saudi Arabia, January 9, 2011
General Motors Company and the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory announced Thursday that they have reached a world-wide licensing agreement to use Argonne’s patented composite cathode material for an advanced lithium-ion battery, the company said in a statement Saturday.

"The agreement between the DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory and General Motors builds on GM’s commitment to be the leader in the development of vehicle electrification technologies designed to meet the diverse needs of customers around the world," said Micky Bly, GM executive director -electric systems, hybrids, electric vehicles and batteries. "Engineers and researchers at General Motors are working on next-generation battery systems that will reduce cost while providing improved performance."

"The goal of Argonne’s battery research is to support the US automobile industry," Jeff Chamberlain, who heads Argonne’s Energy Storage Initiative, said. "So we are extremely pleased to see GM study the potential commercialization of Argonne’s novel lithium-ion battery cathode material. The transfer of this technology is a powerful example of how basic research and technology development performed at a DOE national laboratory can produce technology that is useful to US citizens. The added benefits of this endeavor are the potential creation of US-based green jobs, lessening US dependence on foreign sources of oil and a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions."
The cathode material licensed to GM is part of a large, diverse suite of Li-ion battery inventions and patents developed at Argonne with DOE funding. DOE also provided funding for early science research that helped develop this technology. Use of the cathode material will yield advanced batteries that are high-performing, long-lasting and safe when compared to the existing technology that has dominated the market for nearly two decades.

Argonne’s composite cathode material has a unique combination of lithium- and manganese-rich mixed-metal oxides in a materials-design approach that will extend the operating time between charges, increase the calendar life and improve the inherent safety of lithium-ion cells. The enhanced stability of the composite material permits battery systems to charge at higher voltages, which leads to a substantially higher energy storage capacity.