BRIDGEPORT, CT—With $47.5 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Energy, new EV battery manufacturer Nanoramic Laboratories will build its first major factory here. The factory could eventually employ 200 or more people.
Nanoramic and its parent company FastCap Systems have been working on energy storage systems since 2009, based on the work of researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Originally focusing on “ultracapacitors” that can store and discharge electricity much faster than standard batteries, the company extended its work in 2019 to EV applications.
Funding for the grant was authorized under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which was created to support public transportation programs.
Nanoramic is developing lithium iron phosphate electrode technology to enable batteries that charge faster—the company says tests have demonstrated charging times of under 15 minutes—and which last longer between charges. Its Neocarbonix product does not require expensive cobalt, promising savings for EV buyers.
Nanoramic says its design also makes it easier to recycle battery components by eliminating plastic fluorinated binders used in today’s batteries to glue battery material together, which require toxic solvents to strip away.
While lithium iron phosphate batteries are already in use today, developers reportedly have struggled with declining performance in freezing temperatures or on hot days. But the technology has come into widespread use in China, and U.S. automakers are interested on the promise of lower costs and the technology’s promise to extend the range of vehicles as much as 30 percent.
