SBIR/STTR Award attributes
It has become clear that the future of transportation will involve significant electrification. The simplicity of electric drive components, versatility in usable energy sources, and declining cost of energy storage devices contribute to moving the market in this direction. 5-10 minute charging of energy dense battery systems represents the next critical step forward. Despite the numerous advantages of all-electric systems, recharge rates stand in the way of their anticipated proliferation. Slow recharge rates are especially problematic for eVTOL aircraft systems as low states of charge (SOC), where the charging speed is the fastest, are not accessible for flight safety. EC Power has recently developed a 210 Wh/kg lithium-ion battery for electric vehicles (EVs) that can be charged from 0?80% in 10 minutes, all the while maintaining >90% capacity through 2,500 cycles. This first generation fast-charging battery (gen-1 FCB) is state-of-the-art and the first battery ever to hit the DOEs target of >144 Wh/kg of power in a 10 min charge after 500 charge-discharge cycles. This technology is not done yet; with this STTR program, we will work in cooperation with Penn State University to adapt the gen-1 FCB into the ideal battery system to bring about the new era of eVTOL urban mobility.
