Ateios Systems, a battery component maker from Newberry, Indiana, is saying adios to harmful forever chemicals.
The company's unique electrode manufacturing process also provides for a 20% cost reduction, 50% increased energy density, and reduces energy consumption during the build by an astounding 82%, all per Ateios.
It's "a transformative, scalable solution addressing critical challenges in performance, supply chain, and regulatory compliance," Ateios CEO Rajan Kumar said in an Interesting Engineering story. The report bills the electrode as a novel concept that will make the first-ever battery that's free of forever chemicals — or PFAS — possible.
There are thousands of forever chemicals used in many everyday items, including nonstick cookware. They are estimated by government health experts to be in the blood of 97% of Americans. Medical experts are beginning to associate the chemicals with a growing list of health concerns.
Ateios reports that 95% of batteries use polymers categorized as forever chemicals. The company's experts have replaced these chemicals with better materials, reducing pollution along the way.
Instead of reinventing the proverbial wheel, the experts focused on improving how it's made.
"Ateios' breakthrough is streamlining the manufacturing process, rather than creating whole new battery chemistry," Krisztina Holly, from early-stage venture capital firm Good Growth Capital, said on the battery-maker's website. Good Growth was an early investor.
The solution, called RaiCure Technology, was developed in collaboration with Tennessee's Oak Ridge National Laboratory to make RaiCore electrodes.
Billed as "radiation-based" electrode curing, it replaces high heat with "energy-curable (PFAS-free) polymers that improve the energy density, cost, yields, and environment for all types and sizes of batteries," according to Ateios.
A video clip shows a large machine now commonly used to cure electrodes, requiring loads of energy, hot temperatures, and toxic solvents.
Ateios uses dry materials mixing and dry coating techniques to help shorten the assembly line, which looks similar to a printing press. The coated electrodes are cured at room temperature with a light-based process, per the clip.
Creating cleaner batteries, along with better performance, is the subject of battery science in labs around the world. The breakthroughs often involve replacements for lithium and other costly, hard-to-gather materials.
It's important to note that current tech is still providing for cleaner power. That's because electric vehicles with available batteries remain better for the environment than gas-guzzling rides.
In fact, EVs prevent thousands of pounds of air pollution, by comparison, according to a U.S. Energy Department graphic. And, switching to an EV is easier than ever with up to $7,500 in tax credits. You can even save up to $1,500 a year on gas and maintenance costs by going with battery power.
If Ateios' technology can be scaled to work for EVs as well, it could further reduce their already smaller environmental impact.
For its part, Ateios is inviting work orders for its special electrode-making process, promising to "leapfrog years of R&D," putting PSA-free tech "directly into your assembly line."
"They can adapt their platform quickly for a wide range of existing applications. Their technology especially shines in small electronics applications that have been waiting for an innovation like this," Holly said on the Ateios website.
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