Áreas de investigación
The Center has four main lines of research: new battery cells and materials; electronic systems and applications; sustainable recycling processes; and environmental modeling and analysis.
New Battery Cells and Materials
The goal of this line of research is to design alternative lithium-ion batteries that operate as efficiently and effectively as possible in different contexts. This is achieved through the study of the basic chemical materials for the construction of the storage cells, such as nickel, cobalt, and phosphate. These are high-value and essential minerals that also have significant social and environmental impacts in the territories where they are extracted.
These minerals are analyzed in terms of their conformation, participation, and configuration within each cell to determine the most optimal forms in terms of efficiency and effectiveness. By doing so, it is hoped that design options can be found to reduce or eliminate the use of these critical materials without losing efficiency, and effectiveness and maximizing the useful life cycle.
Electronic Systems and Applications
This line focuses on the scaling of new battery cell designs to evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of each alternative configuration in different geographical and climatic contexts, as well as different levels of demand. This is achieved in two ways: by assessing the arrangement of the cells within a battery pack and by developing a Battery Management System that enables the battery to function properly under all conditions of use.
The configuration of the cells within a battery pack is critical to the efficiency and effectiveness of its performance. The Battery Management System, as a performance manager, determines the number of key internal functions for the lifecycle of each unit, such as the charging and discharging rate.
In turn, this line of research also includes the analysis of used batteries to enable them to be given a new life cycle. These second-use batteries can be utilized for stationary energy storage systems that serve as backup power for the electricity system.
Sustainable Recycling Processes
Environmental Modeling and Analysis
This line of research aims to innovate lithium-ion battery recycling processes by introducing sustainable technology and circular economy principles to reduce the environmental impacts of current chemical and metallurgical processes.
The goal is to recover 100% of critical minerals such as nickel, cobalt, and lithium and recycle them with the same quality as those extracted from primary sources, while also reducing polluting processes.
This non-experimental field conducts cross-sectional analyses of the other research lines, utilizing mathematical modeling to optimize processes and networks, analyze the market, and evaluate sector regulations.