CONDUCTOR Thin and lightweight current collector for lithium-ion battery

Current lithium-ion battery technology uses metal foil current collectors (copper, aluminium) sourced from large manufacturers based in Japan and China; there are no domestic UK suppliers, and all current collectors are imported. Existing current collectors are bulky and account for up to 30% of the total battery weight, reducing the gravimetric energy and power density. Replacing the metal sheet with a composite polymer conductive thin-film (polymer matrix containing electrically conductive particles) to reduce weight is a logical step forward.

The vision for our collaborative project CONDUCTOR is to develop a lightweight and low-cost polymer current collector to replace the aluminium and copper foil current collectors used in lithium-ion batteries (LIB). Such batteries are one of the heaviest and most expensive components in a Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV). We estimate our polymer current collector will save some 4kg weight in a typical 50Kg automotive battery pack thereby increasing its charge and power density. Given there are no UK manufacturers of LIB current collectors, our ambition is to supply the growing need for LIB current collectors in line with growth of the Giga Factories in the UK to support the transition to 100% battery electric vehicle manufacture by 2035\.