Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Review Article
  • Published:

Current status and challenges for automotive battery production technologies

Nature Energy volume 3, pages 290–300 (2018)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Production technology for automotive lithium-ion battery (LIB) cells and packs has improved considerably in the past five years. However, the transfer of developments in materials, cell design and processes from lab scale to production scale remains a challenge due to the large number of consecutive process steps and the significant impact of material properties, electrode compositions and cell designs on processes. This requires an in-depth understanding of the individual production processes and their interactions, and pilot-scale investigations into process parameter selection and prototype cell production. Furthermore, emerging process concepts must be developed at lab and pilot scale that reduce production costs and improve cell performance. Here, we present an introductory summary of the state-of-the-art production technologies for automotive LIBs. We then discuss the key relationships between process, quality and performance, as well as explore the impact of materials and processes on scale and cost. Finally, future developments and innovations that aim to overcome the main challenges are presented.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Fig. 1: Components of LIB packs and a mass content breakdown.
Fig. 2: Generalized battery process chain.
Fig. 3: Effect of drying and calendering processes on physical electrode structure.
Fig. 4: Scalability of electrode and cell production.
Fig. 5: Breakdown of manufacturing costs at battery cell level.
Fig. 6: Prospective concepts for electrode and cell production technologies.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Yoshio, M., Brodd, R. J. & Kozawa, A. Lithium-Ion Batteries – Science and Technologies (Springer, New York, 2009).

  2. Pistoia, G. Lithium-Ion Batteries – Advances and Application. (Elsevier, Amsterdam, 2014).

    Google Scholar 

  3. Väyrynen, A. & Salminen, J. Lithium ion battery production. J. Chem. Thermodyn. 46, 80–85 (2012).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Gallagher, K. G. et al. Optimizing areal capacities through understanding the limitations of lithium-ion electrodes. J. Electrochem. Soc. 163, A138–A149 (2016). Influence of calendering process and resulting porosity on achievable energy and power density is studied.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Haselrieder, W. et al. Measuring the coating adhesion strength of electrodes for lithium-ion batteries. Int. J. Adhes. Adhes. 60, 1–8 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Zhang, S. S. A review on the separators of liquid electrolyte Li-ion batteries. J. Power Sources 164, 351–364 (2007).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Kim, K. M., Jeon, W. S., Chung, I. J. & Chang, S. H. Effect of mixing sequences on the electrode characteristics of lithium-ion rechargeable batteries. J. Power Sources 83, 108–113 (1999).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Haselrieder, W. et al. Influence of formulation method and related processes on structural, electrical and electrochemical properties of LMS/NCA-blend electrodes. Prog. Solid State Chem. 42, 157–174 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Liu, Z., Battaglia, V. & Mukherjee, P. P. Mesoscale elucidation of the influence of mixing sequence in electrode processing. Langmuir 30, 15102–15113 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Bockholt, H., Indrikova, M., Netz, A., Golks, F. & Kwade, A. The interaction of consecutive process steps in the manufacturing of lithium-ion battery electrodes with regard to structural and electrochemical properties. J. Power Sources 325, 140–151 (2016). Impact of mixing process and consecutive calendering on structure of carbon black (as conductivity agent) and resulting electrochemical performance is investigated.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Wenzel, V., Nirschl, H. & Nötzel, D. Challenges in lithium-ion-battery slurry preparation and potential of modifying electrode structures by different mixing processes. Energy Technol. 3, 692–698 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Bockholt, H. Formulation Strategies to Optimize Performance of Lithium-Ion Batteries. PhD thesis, Technische Universitaet Braunschweig (2016).

  13. Liu, D. et al. An effective mixing for lithium ion battery slurries. Adv. Chem. Eng. Sci. 04, 515–528 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Haselrieder, W., Ivanov, S., Christen, D. K., Bockholt, H. & Kwade, A. Impact of the calendering process on the interfacial structure and the related electrochemical performance of secondary lithium-ion batteries. ECS Transactions 50, 59–70 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Dreger, H., Bockholt, H., Haselrieder, W. & Kwade, A. Discontinuous and continuous processing of low-solvent battery slurries for lithium nickel cobalt manganese oxide electrodes. J. Electron. Mater. 44, 4434–4443 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Terashita, K. & Miyanami, K. Kneading and dispersion of positive electrode materials in a lithium ion secondary battery for high-density film. Adv. Powder Technol. 13, 201–214 (2002).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Chen, L.-C. et al. Improvement of lithium-ion battery performance using a two-layered cathode by simultaneous slot-die coating. J. Energy Stor. 5, 156–162 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Schmitt, M., Scharfer, P. & Schabel, W. Slot die coating of lithium-ion battery electrodes: investigations on edge effect issues for stripe and pattern coatings. J. Coat. Technol. Res. 11, 57–63 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Liu, Z. & Mukherjee, P. P. Microstructure evolution in lithium-ion battery electrode processing. J. Electrochem. Soc. 161, E3248–E3258 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Westphal, B. G., Bockholt, H., Günther, T., Haselrieder, W. & Kwade, A. Influence of convective drying parameters on electrode performance and physical electrode properties. ECS Transactions 64, 57–68 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Jaiser, S., Friske, A., Baunach, M., Scharfer, P. & Schabel, W. Development of a three-stage drying profile based on characteristic drying stages for lithium-ion battery anodes. Dry. Technol. 35, 1266–1275 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Ahmed, S., Nelson, P. A., Gallagher, K. G. & Dees, D. W. Energy impact of cathode drying and solvent recovery during lithium-ion battery manufacturing. J. Power Sources 322, 169–178 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Meyer, C., Bockholt, H., Haselrieder, W. & Kwade, A. Characterization of the calendering process for compaction of electrodes for lithium-ion batteries. J. Mater. Process. Technol. 249, 172–178 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Zheng, H., Tan, L., Liu, G., Song, X. & Battaglia, V. S. Calendering effects on the physical and electrochemical properties of LiNi1/3Mn1/3Co1/3O2 cathode. J. Power Sources 208, 52–58 (2012).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Kang, H. et al. Geometric and electrochemical characteristics of LiNi1/3Mn1/3Co1/3O2 electrode with different calendering conditions. Electrochim. Acta 232, 431–438 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Schilling, A., Schmitt, J., Dietrich, F. & Droeder, K. Analyzing Bending stresses on lithium-ion battery cathodes induced by the assembly process. Energy Technol. 4, 1502–1508 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Lee, S. S., Kim, T. H., Hu, S. J., Cai, W. W. & Abell, J. A. Joining technologies for automotive lithium-ion battery manufacturing – A review. In Int. Manuf. Sci. Eng. Conf. 1, 541–549 (ASME, 2010).

  28. Knoche, T. et al. In situ visualization of the electrolyte solvent filling process by neutron radiography. J. Power Sources 331, 267–276 (2016). Neutron radiography is identified as a valuable method for in situ studies of the electrolyte filling and wetting process.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Knoche, T., Surek, F. & Reinhart, G. A process model for the electrolyte filling of lithium-ion batteries. Proc. CIRP 41, 405–410 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. An, S. J., Li, J., Du, Z., Daniel, C. & Wood, D. L. Fast formation cycling for lithium ion batteries. J. Power Sources 342, 846–852 (2017). A formation protocol is presented that allows the formation time can be significantly shortened without affecting the cell performance, which results in considerable savings potential in cell manufacturing.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Li, S., Wang, H., Lin, Y.-T., Abell, J. & Hu, S. J. Benchmarking of high capacity battery module/pack design for automatic assembly system. In Int. Manuf. Sci. Eng. Conf. 1–13 (ASME, 2010).

  32. Saw, L. H., Ye, Y. & Tay, A. A. O. Integration issues of lithium-ion battery into electric vehicles battery pack. J. Clean. Prod. 113, 1032–1045 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Arora, S., Shen, W. & Kapoor, A. Review of mechanical design and strategic placement technique of a robust battery pack for electric vehicles. Renew. Sust. Energ. Rev. 60, 1319–1331 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. Günther, T. et al. The manufacturing of electrodes: key process for the future success of lithium-ion batteries. Adv. Mat. Res. 1140, 304–311 (2016).

    Google Scholar 

  35. Bauer, W., Nötzel, D., Wenzel, V. & Nirschl, H. Influence of dry mixing and distribution of conductive additives in cathodes for lithium ion batteries. J. Power Sources 288, 359–367 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. Patey, T. J., Hintennach, A., La Mantia, F. & Novák, P. Electrode engineering of nanoparticles for lithium-ion batteries—Role of dispersion technique. J. Power Sources 189, 590–593 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Pejovnik, S., Dominko, R., Bele, M., Gaberscek, M. & Jamnik, J. Electrochemical binding and wiring in battery materials. J. Power Sources 184, 593–597 (2008).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  38. Cho, K. Y., Kwon, Y. I., Youn, J. R. & Song, Y. S. Evaluation of slurry characteristics for rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. Mater. Res. Bull. 48, 2922–2926 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  39. Bockholt, H., Haselrieder, W. & Kwade, A. Intensive powder mixing for dry dispersing of carbon black and its relevance for lithium-ion battery cathodes. Powder Technol. 297, 266–274 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  40. Nakajima, H., Kitahara, T., Higashinaka, Y. & Nagata, Y. Effect of electrode mixing conditions on the performance of lithium-ion batteries analyzed by fast Fourier transform electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. ECS Transactions 64, 87–95 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  41. Bitsch, B. et al. A novel slurry concept for the fabrication of lithium-ion battery electrodes with beneficial properties. J. Power Sources 265, 81–90 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  42. Jaiser, S., Sanchez Salach, N., Baunach, M., Scharfer, P. & Schabel, W. Impact of drying conditions and wet film properties on adhesion and film solidification of lithium-ion battery anodes. Dry. Technol. 35, 1807–1817 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  43. Hagiwara, H., Suszynski, W. J. & Francis, L. F. A Raman spectroscopic method to find binder distribution in electrodes during drying. J. Coat. Technol. Res. 11, 11–17 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  44. Jaiser, S. et al. Investigation of film solidification and binder migration during drying of Li-Ion battery anodes. J. Power Sources 318, 210–219 (2016). Physical processes during drying of electrodes cause migration of binders, which can be minimized by appropriate drying profiles.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  45. Tran, H. Y. et al. Influence of electrode preparation on the electrochemical performance of LiNi0.8Co0.15Al0.05O2 composite electrodes for lithium-ion batteries. J. Power Sources 210, 276–285 (2012).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  46. Schilcher, C., Meyer, C. & Kwade, A. Structural and electrochemical properties of calendered LMO cathodes. Energy Technol. 4, 1–8 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  47. Park, Y. S., Oh, E. S. & Lee, S. M. Effect of polymeric binder type on the thermal stability and tolerance to roll-pressing of spherical natural graphite anodes for Li-ion batteries. J. Power Sources 248, 1191–1196 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  48. Chen, Y.-H., Wang, C.-W., Zhang, X. & Sastry, A. M. Porous cathode optimization for lithium cells: Ionic and electronic conductivity, capacity, and selection of materials. J. Power Sources 195, 2851–2863 (2010).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  49. Tang, M., Albertus, P. & Newman, J. Two-dimensional modeling of lithium deposition during cell charging. J. Electrochem. Soc. 156, A390–A399 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  50. Pfleging, W. & Pröll, J. A new approach for rapid electrolyte wetting in tape cast electrodes for lithium-ion batteries. J. Mater. Chem. A 2, 14918–14926 (2014). A laser structuring method is presented for the cathode to accelerate electrolyte wetting, to increase cell lifetime and to increase the capacity.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  51. Xie, Y. et al. Enhancement on the wettability of lithium battery separator toward nonaqueous electrolytes. J. Membrane Sci. 503, 25–30 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  52. Juang, R. S., Liang, C. H., Ma, W. C., Tsai, C. Y. & Huang, C. Low-pressure ethane/nitrogen gas mixture plasma surface modification effect on the wetting and electrochemical performance of polymeric separator for lithium-ion batteries. J. Taiwan Inst. Chem. E 45, 3046–3051 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  53. Knoche, T. & Reinhart, G. Electrolyte Filling of Large-Scale Lithium-Ion Batteries: Challenges for Production Technology and Possible Approaches. Appl. Mech. Mater. 794, 11–18 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  54. Ahmed, S., Nelson, P. A. & Dees, D. W. Study of a dry room in a battery manufacturing plant using a process model. J. Power Sources 326, 490–497 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  55. Trask, S. E. et al. From coin cells to 400 mAh pouch cells: Enhancing performance of high-capacity lithium-ion cells via modifications in electrode constitution and fabrication. J. Power Sources 259, 233–244 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  56. Karulkar, M., Wen, H., Kudla, B. & Blaser, R. Evaluation of Si-Based Cells and the Importance of Scale-up. ECS Transactions 72, 197–206 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  57. Du, Z. et al. Enabling aqueous processing for crack-free thick electrodes. J. Power Sources 354, 200–206 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  58. Nelson, P. A., Shabbir, A., Gallagher, K. G. & Dees, D. W. Cost savings for manufacturing lithium batteries in a flexible plant. J. Power Sources 283, 506–516 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  59. Wood, D. L., Li, J. & Daniel, C. Prospects for reducing the processing cost of lithium ion batteries. J. Power Sources 275, 234–242 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  60. Patry, G., Romagny, A., Martinet, S. & Froehlich, D. Cost modeling of lithium-ion battery cells for automotive applications. Energy Sci. Eng. 3, 71–82 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  61. Schuenemann, J. -H. Cost Model to Validate Production Cost of Lithium-Ion Batteries. PhD thesis, Technische Universitaet Braunschweig (2015).

  62. Schuenemann, J.-H., Dreger, H., Bockholt, H. & Kwade, A. Smart electrode processing for battery cost reduction. ECS Transactions 73, 153–159 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  63. Peelamedu, R. D. & Seccombe, D. A. Jr. Performance study of Li-ion battery electrodes dried using inline microwave hybrid system. Ceram. Eng. Sci. Proc. 36, 101–115 (2016).

    Google Scholar 

  64. Bhattacharya, M. & Basak, T. A review on the susceptor assisted microwave processing of materials. Energy 97, 306–338 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  65. Al-Shroofy, M. et al. Solvent-free dry powder coating process for low-cost manufacturing of LiNi1/3Mn1/3Co1/3O2 cathodes in lithium-ion batteries. J. Power Sources 352, 187–193 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  66. Ludwig, B., Zheng, Z., Shou, W., Wang, Y. & Pan, H. Solvent-free manufacturing of electrodes for lithium-ion batteries. Sci. Rep. 6, 23150 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  67. Chiang, Y. M. et al. Semi-solid filled battery and method of manufacture. Patent WO2012088442 A3 (2014).

  68. Hopkins, B. J., Smith, K. C., Slocum, A. H. & Chiang, Y.-M. Component-cost and performance based comparison of flow and static batteries. J. Power Sources 293, 1032–1038 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  69. Choi, J. W. & Aurbach, D. Promise and reality of post-lithium-ion batteries with high energy densities. Nat. Rev. Mater. 1, 16013 (2016). This review provides a detailed and critical overview of battery materials and systems that, according to today’s perspective, have the potential to replace lithium-ion batteries.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  70. Chen, T., Wu, J., Zhang, Q. & Su, X. Recent advancement of SiOx based anodes for lithium-ion batteries. J. Power Sources 363, 126–144 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  71. Wood, V. & Ebner, M. O. J. Method for the production of electrodes and electrodes made using such a method. Patent WO 2014170024 A1 (2014).

  72. Ebner, M., Chung, D.-W., García, R. E. & Wood, V. Tortuosity anisotropy in Lithium-ion battery electrodes. Adv. Energy Mater. 4, 1–6 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  73. Aydemir, M., Glodde, A., Mooy, R. & Bach, G. Increasing productivity in assembling z-folded electrode-separator-composites for lithium-ion batteries. CIRP Ann.-Manuf. Technol. 66, 25–28 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  74. Kim, Y. J., Lee, H. S., Kim, G. S. & Woo, J. M. Manufacturing method of stacked electrodes by winding type electrode stacking and stacked electrode thereby. US patent US20100319187 A1 (2010).

  75. Baumeister, M. & Fleischer, J. Integrated cut and place module for high productive manufacturing of lithium-ion cells. CIRP Ann.-Manuf. Technol. 63, 5–8 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  76. Haselrieder, W. Systematical Adjustment of Battery Electrode Performance by Calendering. PhD thesis, Technische Universitaet Braunschweig (2017).

  77. Diekmann, J. et al. Ecological recycling of lithium-ion batteries from electric vehicles with focus on mechanical processes. J. Electrochem. Soc. 164, A6184–A6191 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  78. Schmitt, J. Studies on the Electrode-Separator Assembly Production Process for Lithium-ion Batteries. PhD thesis, Technische Universitaet Braunschweig (2015).

  79. Chiang, Y. M., Duduta, M., Holman, R., Limthongkul, P. & Tan, T. Semi-solid electrodes having high rate capability. Patent WO/2014/093876 (2015).

Download references

Acknowledgements

We thank production experts of cell manufacturers including LG Chem (Korea), Litarion (Germany) and Saft (France) for their comments on the Review article.

Author information

Author notes

  1. These authors contributed equally: Arno Kwade and Wolfgang Haselrieder.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Battery LabFactory Braunschweig (BLB), Technische Universität Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Germany

    Arno Kwade, Wolfgang Haselrieder, Ruben Leithoff, Franz Dietrich & Klaus Droeder

  2. Institute of Particle Technology, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Germany

    Arno Kwade & Wolfgang Haselrieder

  3. Institute of Machine Tools and Production Technology, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Germany

    Ruben Leithoff, Franz Dietrich & Klaus Droeder

  4. Litarion GmbH, Kamenz, Germany

    Armin Modlinger

Authors
  1. Arno Kwade
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Wolfgang Haselrieder
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Ruben Leithoff
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Armin Modlinger
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Franz Dietrich
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Klaus Droeder
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Arno Kwade.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Additional information

Publisher’s note: Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Kwade, A., Haselrieder, W., Leithoff, R. et al. Current status and challenges for automotive battery production technologies. Nat Energy 3, 290–300 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-018-0130-3

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-018-0130-3

This article is cited by

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing