From MIT's Technology Review, October 16:
The US Department of Energy has committed a $670.6 million loan to Aspen Aerogels for a new factory to produce materials that improve battery safety.
A company making fire-suppressing battery materials just got a $670.6 million loan commitment from the US Department of Energy.
Aspen Aerogels makes insulating materials that can be layered inside an EV’s battery to prevent or slow heat and fires from spreading within the pack. The company is building a new factory in Georgia to produce its materials, and the DOE’s Loan Programs Office will provide the massive loan to help it finish building the plant.
As more EVs hit the roads, concern is growing about the relatively rare but dangerous problem of battery fires. While gas-powered cars catch fire at higher rates, battery fires can be harder to put out and are at greater risk of reigniting, creating dangerous situations for drivers and first responders. Materials like Aspen Aerogels’ thermal barriers can help improve battery safety.
“I think the goal is to really make sure that they’re helping to achieve critical battery safety goals that we all share,” says Jigar Shah, director of the Loan Programs Office.
Automakers including General Motors, Toyota, and Audi already buy Aspen Aerogels materials to use in their vehicles. If the new factory starts as planned and ramps to full capacity, it could supply material for over two million EVs annually.
When a lithium-ion battery is damaged or short-circuits, it can go into a process called thermal runaway, a feedback loop of heat and chemical reactions that can lead to a fire or explosion. Electric vehicles’ battery packs are made up of many small battery cells wired together—so there’s a risk that a problem in one cell can spread to the rest of the pack....
....MUCH MORE
Our first post on aerogels, 2007:
Scientists hail ‘frozen smoke’ as material that will change world
Seven years later:
....Aerogel: A synthetic porous ultralight material derived from a gel, in which the liquid component of the gel has been replaced with a gas. The result is a solid with extremely low density and thermal conductivity which feels like polystyrene (styrofoam) to the touch. Potential applications include improved thermal insulation, chemical absorber for cleaning up spills, electrochemical supercapacitors and shock absorption. Scientifically viable in 2015; mainstream in 2019; and financially viable in 2021.
Pretty close on the timeline.
