Ener1 Prepares to Commercialize Electrodes

Ener1 Inc.’s NanoEner Inc. subsidiary has established and equipped a pilot nanotechnology-based manufacturing facility to fabricate electrodes for high discharge rate lithium-ion batteries. The company’s battery subsidiary, EnerDel Inc., in which Delphi Corp. holds a 19.5% interest, is in discussions with automotive OEMs regarding evaluation of samples for use in hybrid electric vehicles where the high discharge rate characteristic is viewed as key to performance and cost.

The new facility has three beta-phase apparatus stations with specially designed software-based controls for continuous fine-tuning and monitoring of all aspects of the vapor deposition-based, nanoproduction process, which allows maintenance of desired electrode structures to the nano level. All of the production equipment and related-nanotechnology processes used in the facility were designed by the company’s scientists and engineers.