Battery technology manufacturer Theion has announced the upcoming commercial availability of its Crystal Battery for applications starting with the aerospace sector.
The announcement comes with the appointment of Dr. Ulrich Ehmes as CEO, who oversees the commercialization of Theion‘s lithium-sulfur cathode technology, which targets a threefold range and runtime compared to conventional lithium-ion cells.
Theion’s battery innovation is based on sulfur – a material that is available in abundance without harmful mining (a by-product of industrial processes). Sulfur replaces cathode materials with high processing costs and high metal content such as nickel and cobalt. As a result, it would be 99 percent cheaper to buy than the cathode materials.
According to Theion, its battery cells also require 90 percent less energy to manufacture, from raw material to finished cell.
Led by Dr Ehmes, who has a long track record of industrializing battery production at companies such as Swiss lithium-ion battery company Leclanché, Berlin-based Theion will use its experience to scale production.
“I joined Theion because I believe that selecting the right active materials for batteries and processing these materials in a way that best utilizes the storage properties of the material will take the battery industry to another level. bring,” said Dr. Ehmes in a statement.
“With 16 patents pending, our process innovations are scalable and will bring a new dimension of mobility, reach, uptime and sustainability.”
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Theion’s patented manufacturing process extends battery life by combining the properties of the sulfur crystal material with carbon nanotubes and a patented solid electrolyte. The company will ship materials later this year, first to aerospace customers as part of the qualification phase, then aircraft, air taxis, drones, cellphones and laptops before serving the electric flight and automotive sectors in 2024.
The company is backed by Lukasz Gadowski, CEO of Team Global, a technology holding company that invests in and launches groundbreaking technology companies. Recent investments include Volocopter, Zapata and AutoFlight.
“At a time when industry demand for batteries is rising, but material costs and sustainable sourcing are volatile, Theion’s breakthrough is ideally timed,” said lead investor Gadowski.
“Perfect for all mobility applications, while being extremely durable, Theion’s Crystal Battery aims to extend the run time of portable devices, the range of electric cars and the safe flight time of eVTOL applications and electric aircraft by a factor of three . When in full production, it has the potential to replace every battery in every mobility device on the planet.”
Theion is expanding by adding manufacturing facilities to accelerate its mass production roadmap, starting in Berlin, where it currently has three locations. Locations for later Gigafactories are as yet undetermined, but will provide locations close to customers, including in Europe, Asia and the US.
