Nexceris is privileged to assist energy companies, large and small, with the commercialization of innovative product offerings through material based enhancements, validation, and testing. The LEVER process is our proven collaboration method, which utilizes your technology and Nexceris’ expertise, to allow our partners to move faster to commercialization and a positive world impact.
Our materials science expertise helps customers improve or speed up innovation within the energy sector, so when we collaborated with this developer of energy storage products, one of our main objectives was to determine what the supply chain would look like. Bringing our customer through our LEVER process allowed us to help them move to production quickly, with a more clear view of what commercial success would look like.
Nexceris was tasked with finding ways to improve the performance of critical material components of a start-up partner’s technology. As they were working to define target markets and their business model, they needed assistance to enhance the value proposition of their product. Using the LEVER process allowed us to help them move quickly through their commercialization plans, advancing through the technology readiness levels (TRL) with their technology concept and get products into their customers’ hands.
The Situation:
Nexceris collaborated with a developer of ground-breaking micro-grid and energy storage products to create high-quality, high-performance, cost-competitive battery electrode materials. The alliance has grown from an initial intensive research effort to full-scale production to achieve a common goal of a robust materials production stream with diversified raw materials and process flexibility.
LEVER In Action:
We applied our LEVER process of: Learning, Estimating, Validating, Enhancing, and providing Results. This process allows us to create battery electrode materials for this energy storage developer. See how we collaborated below:
(L)earn:
Over the course of an initial research effort, we learned which electrode materials were best from physical characterization at Nexceris and in-cell performance testing. Together, we evaluated relative product performance and manufacturability and down-selected materials for scale-up.
(E)stimate:
Nexceris engineers leveraged their experience in synthesizing materials for the solid-oxide-fuel-cell market to provide high-fidelity estimates of manufacturing costs and the best options for cost reductions in moving from laboratory to commercial production. Nexceris estimated the labor, capital equipment and materials costs to show how as materials production was scaled the product cost would drop while maintaining product quality. By evaluating alternative starting materials and developing a diversified supply chain, risks associated with raw materials pricing could also be managed, a critical hurdle in scaling a new technology.
(V)alidate:
Through a series of careful performance assessments of scaled materials production, the team validated that recommended process modifications paid off in battery trials using pilot-scale trial runs and delivery of powder for testing. Each process modification was tested to confirm the crystal structure, physical properties and performance of the resulting powder met the required specifications. The validated modifications were then adopted into the Nexceris pilot production to reach manufacturing cost targets.
(E)nhance:
To enhance the value of the work, the scaled process line was used to confirm process reproducibility and identify process control limits. These results were used to update the cost model to identify the best remaining opportunities for process enhancement.
(R)esults:
The work accomplished by Nexceris helped the customer quickly increase production without sacrificing quality or IP. According to the customer, “Nexceris has always been very responsive to our needs and provided great service for us, both with their technical support and advice, and with their manufacturing cost and quality. Their quality control and ability to scale material from lab-based evaluation size to full-scale production without changing the characteristics and quality of their material is exceptional. I fully endorse working with Nexceris on any oxide-based material development or manufacturing projects.”