Battery Production: PEM and TRUMPF Optimize Important Process Step

Battery Production: PEM and TRUMPF Optimize Important Process Step.

The Chair of Production Engineering of E-Mobility Components (PEM) of RWTH Aachen University has demonstrated that the drying time for electrodes in battery production can be significantly reduced using a new type of laser process.

Professor Achim Kampker, PEM Director, said:

This step enables a much more energy-efficient, high-quality and cost-effective production of batteries.

The institute, together with its spin-off PEM Motion and the technology company TRUMPF, presents the results of the experimental study, which the RWTH Chair carried out on its own research line, in the white paper entitled “VCSEL laser drying in battery production”. 

The background to the research project is the fact that lithium-ion batteries are still by far the most expensive component of electric vehicles, accounting for more than 31 percent of the total cost – partly due to the high energy consumption caused by the electrode drying process. The new, laser-based process allows a significant reduction in drying time with at least the same quality compared to the current state of the art. So-called VCSEL-based laser heating systems are said to reduce both operating costs and carbon consumption by up to 40 percent. In addition, equipment costs can be reduced by up to 50 percent while maintaining the same electrode and cell quality.

Reduced floor space and better process control

Ralph Gudde, Vice President Marketing and Sales at TRUMPF Photonic Components, said:

Laser drying offers many advantages – such as improved energy efficiency, reduced floor space, and better process control.

The VCSEL laser heating systems are modular in design and have separate zones, allowing tight control of individual illumination zones. Another special feature of the VCSEL modules is their compactness and short working distance, enabling easy integration also into existing lines.

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Battery Production: PEM and TRUMPF Optimize Important Process Step. source