Two firms innovating in power storage say their new collaboration can speed worldwide deployment of batteries, made cleaner and with less waste.
Chemicals-to-energy combine Worley and advanced battery technologists Nano One are teaming up to boost deployment of the latter’s One-Pot process. It makes high-quality materials for cathodes, while claiming a lower environmental impact than prevailing alternatives.
Crucially, say the partners, One-Pot eliminates wastewater contaminated with sodium sulphate, a major challenge in current processes for making cathodes, the electron-emitting terminals of most batteries.
Sodium sulphates are commodities used in much industrial chemistry, including as a filler for dry detergents and in bulking up wood pulp to make paper.
The strategic alliance could be instrumental in accelerating the development and deployment of a new generation of battery cathode material plants sold and licensed to operators globally.
Nano One and Worley, a multinational with Australian origins, will integrate the One-Pot process into a design package, enabling customers to create competitive CAM production facilities to meet growing market demand.
The initial focus will be on lithium ferro phosphate (LFP) cathode chemistries. Other varieties will be addressed in time.
Worley Chemetics will design and fabricate the process reactors, incorporating metal alloys specifically designed for corrosive environments. Additionally, Nano One and Worley will continue to innovate process and plant designs to create a design-once-build-many growth strategy.
Nano One’s CEO Dan Blondal commented: “We expect this partnership to add value and significantly de-risk the One-Pot process, using Worley Chemetics’ patented metal alloys, reactor design and fabrication capability, and the technical and delivery capability of the broader Worley organisation”.
Laura Leonard, Worley’s group president for technology, fourth from left in the image above, remarked: “Nano One’s innovative One-Pot process is a game-changer for the production and performance of battery materials. Combining Nano One’s technology with our expertise and scale in battery materials will advance Worley’s growth strategy while accelerating the deployment of this important technology.”
