Although we might not always realize it, vacuum plays a role in countless aspects of our everyday lives. In this series, we take a closer look at just how much we rely on vacuum, from the way we breathe to our bicycle helmets to life-saving medical procedures.
Batteries are essential items in most households. Everyday items from the television remote and flashlights to smartphones and laptops require batteries to operate. State-of-the-art lithium-ion batteries are currently the preferred technology for electric vehicles, and advances in battery technology will be crucial to convert the intermittent energy of wind and solar into stable, around-the-clock alternatives to fossil fuels for power generation. To achieve these advances in battery performance – while lowering costs and avoiding issues like exploding smartphones – the manufacturing process demands a high degree of precision. Vacuum plays an important role.
“Vacuum technology is likely to remain a critical technology for the battery production process.”
Manufacturers have turned to innovative pick-and-place handling methods relying on vacuum to cut costs and reduce rejection rates. For example, decentralized vacuum generation processes have been introduced that create reliable suction quickly, while keeping contaminants from circulating in the manufacturing area. Vacuum technology is also frequently used in multiple steps of the battery production process, from degassing of media and vacuum drying of electrodes, to leak detection. Each of these steps helps determine the functionality and cost of these workhorse energy storage systems, and advances in all of these steps will be needed if batteries are to play the important role envisioned for them in our energy future.
At VACUUBRAND®, we are experts in vacuum for science. To learn more about our laboratory and OEM vacuum pumps, please visit our website. If you’d like details about our modular, energy-saving alternative to central vacuum systems for labs, our technology microsite offers an overview. Or simply contact us today about your lab vacuum needs.