Next-Battery has secured a strategic relationship with China-based Lvchi Automobile Technology, which may see Next-Battery play a significant part in the future development plans of Lvchi as Next-Battery moves towards completing its first advanced prototype battery.
Both Next-Battery and Lvchi will proceed with key visits in Ukraine and China during Q1 2019 with a view to formalising a commercial collaboration venture in China designed to fast track the commercial roll-out and development of Next-Battery.
Lvchi Auto Group is a whole value chain operation platform company that focuses on electric vehicles, with targeted annual production of over 500,000 vehicles. The global design, research and development base of Lvchi is located at the Turin engineering centre in Italy. Lvchi also has technology centres in Coventry, England and Silicon Valley in California, USA. The engineering application development is carried out by Lvchi’s Shanghai engineering research institute in collaboration with Wuxi Research branch and Beijing Future Institute.
Next-Battery’s technology involves unique lithium-ion chemistries with nano-structuring technology to effectively upgrade a battery electrode’s functional properties.
The proprietary process significantly increases the surface area of the metal oxides in the cathode which allows dimension reduction and doping to increase functionalisation and morphology control. This enables cathodes that are ultra-porous, and lithium infused within a nanostructured surface to enable faster lithium-ion transport and electron movement in a more energy dense structure.
Laboratory studies on the cathode by Next-Battery’s scientists reportedly show the technology can more than double the specific energy of the best commercial lithium-ion batteries today, such as the new Tesla/Panasonic 2170 cell used in the Tesla Model 3 battery pack. The company’s research indicates that recharge time should also improve based upon tests to date.
“We are progressing to plan and have completed adding the new Solid State electrolyte team to our group as well as commencing conductivity tests on our double-walled nanotubes of carbon, which our parent company developed for other applications,” CEO of Next-Battery Benton Wilcoxon said.
“The Lvchi collaboration is an exciting component to our development and confirms what we already were very confident in – that Next-Battery is well advanced in developing a battery that has the potential to replace existing technologies being used in EV’s today.”