2.1. State-of-the-Art Manufacturing Conventional processing of a lithium-ion battery cell consists of three steps: (1) electrode manufacturing, (2) cell assembly, and (3) cell finishing (formation) [8, 10].
Manufacturing of Lithium-Ion Battery Cells LIBs are electrochemical cells that convert chemical energy into electrical energy (and vice versa). They consist of negative and positive electrodes (anode and cathode, respectively), both of which are surrounded by the electrolyte and separated by a permeable polyolefin membrane (separator).
The benefit of the process is that typical lithium-ion battery manufacturing speed (target: 80 m/min) can be achieved, and the amount of lithium deposited can be well controlled. Additionally, as the lithium powder is stabilized via a slurry, its reactivity is reduced.
Lithium-ion battery cells are connected (either in series or in parallel) in battery modules. Then, battery modules with electrical, thermal and mechanical components are assembled into a battery pack.
The vacuum deposition technique is generally a slow and expensive method, making it incompatible with the current industrialization speed of lithium-ion battery manufacturing. Moreover, there are safety concerns due to the lithium metal used.
Li-ion batteries, particularly the next generation silicon based technology ( Scrosati and Garche, 2010 ), have the potential to span from several megawatt huge battery installations used for “spinning reserves” to ensure grid reliability, to automotive, aerospace, medical, and military industries.