The intricacies of particle size distribution (PSD) in battery materials are paramount in dictating the electrochemical performance of cells. As the demand for finer particles with tighter specifications continues to grow, companies often find themselves striving to meet 21st-century requirements using 20th-century technologies. This is where we at Elcan Industries step in, bridging this technological gap with our innovative solutions.
For the graphite anode, primary particles typically span a range of 1-30 microns. Yet, these primary entities often agglomerate into secondary structures, sometimes extending up to 10-50 microns. This agglomeration can influence the electrode’s porosity and tortuosity, critical parameters in ion transport.
In the cathode realm, materials like LCO, LFP, and NMC exhibit varying particle sizes, with primary particles ranging from 0.1 to 10 microns and secondary aggregates spanning broader ranges. The anodic material, LTO, and silicon also present their unique particle size characteristics.
We at Elcan Industries have pioneered two groundbreaking technologies, the Hi-Sifter, and the Elbow Jet Air Classifier, addressing the challenges of precise particle sizing.
The Hi-Sifter is an industrial screening machine capable of achieving fine separations down to 10 microns without needing balls, sliders, or ultrasonics. This innovative approach ensures higher efficiency separations. The Hi-Sifter employs a high amplitude, low-frequency approach, ensuring particles remain elevated and preventing screen blinding.
On the other hand, the Elbow Jet Air Classifier stands as the world’s first air classifier capable of performing simultaneous, multiple classifications of fine, dry powders. Remarkably, it can make up to three separations in a single pass. Relying on the Coanda Effect, where a jet stream flows along a nearby surface, the Elbow Jet Air Classifier operates without rotating parts, making it ideal for abrasive and high-purity powders. This principle ensures particles are classified by size with astonishing accuracy and efficiency, revolutionizing the classification process.
While many companies offer testing before equipment purchase, at Elcan, we emphasize the importance of representative testing. We believe in large-scale tests, running for extended periods, to truly gauge equipment performance. This approach ensures our clients get a realistic understanding of how our technologies will perform in a production setting. Other companies do testing anywhere from 60 seconds to 5 minutes. We also run testing on our Electromagnet separator equipment for companies that want to combine sieving and classifying with magnetic separation to remove contamination from their materials. Elcan runs full day testing in various settings to ensure the quality and performance our customer requires is what they get.
In the grand scheme of battery research, optimizing particle size is a delicate act, a dance of chemistry, physics, and engineering. It’s a testament to the intricate balance that battery scientists, with the aid of industry leaders like us at Elcan Industries, strive for, aiming to push the boundaries of energy storage technologies.
If you’re interested in experiencing the capabilities of our advanced technologies firsthand, we invite you to schedule a trial at our full-scale toll-processing facility. Call us today to schedule your trial!
Call today to schedule your trial!
