Ascend Elements has recently sent one of North America’s first deliveries of engineered cathode materials to Freudenberg e-Power Systems. Cathode materials engineered from recycled battery metals can help EV battery manufacturers qualify for U.S. tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
Ascend Elements uses a patented process referred to as Hydro-to-Cathode direct precursor synthesis to manufacture NMC pCAM and CAM from used lithium-ion batteries and battery manufacturing scrap.
The closed-loop process eliminates up to 15 intermediary steps in the traditional cathode manufacturing process and provides economic and carbon-reduction benefits.
A recent life cycle assessment conducted by an independent third party found that Ascend Elements’ Hydro-to-Cathode process produces EV battery cathode material at a 49% reduction in carbon emissions compared to traditional cathode manufacturing processes. By 2030, the company aims to achieve a 90% reduction in carbon footprint for its decarbonized cathode products.
The shipment of pCAM material was engineered and manufactured at the Ascend Elements pilot facility in Westborough, Massachusetts. The materials will be sintered and finished as CAM at the Ascend Elements location in Novi, Michigan, before shipment to Freudenberg e-Power Systems at the XALT Energy plant in Midland, Michigan.
“This is a relatively small shipment in relation to the intended full-scale commercial program, but it’s an important milestone for Ascend Elements and the US battery materials industry,” said Eric Gratz, CTO and co-founder of Ascend Elements.
Ascend Elements’ engineers have worked closely with Freudenberg e-Power Systems for over a year to engineer and manufacture low-carbon cathode material to high-performance requirements for lifetime, charge time, and safety. Several peer-reviewed studies have shown Ascend Elements’ recycled battery materials perform, as well as similar materials made from virgin (mined) sources.
While this shipment of material was made in Massachusetts and finished in Michigan, Ascend Elements continues to build a $1 billion advanced manufacturing campus in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. Scheduled to begin operations in early 2025, the 1-million-square-foot Apex 1 facility will eventually produce enough pCAM and CAM for 750,000 EVs per year.
In addition to the CAM deal with Freudenberg, Ascend Elements landed a $1 billion contract to manufacture sustainable pCAM for a major US-based company in June 2023. Commercial-scale shipments of material to the undisclosed customer will begin in Q1 2025.
“Battery manufacturers in the United States are starting to use engineered battery materials that are made in America from recycled metals,” said Gratz. “Engineered cathode material is normally made in Asia using material from mined sources. Now we’re making it domestically from recycled EV batteries and production scrap while generating just half the carbon footprint.”
Filed Under: Batteries, Technology News