BATTERY TECHNOLOGY Companies partner up to develop 'SuperBattery' battery technology

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Skeleton Technologies, a global provider of ultracapacitor energy storage products, and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology have announced that as part of a new partnership, the two companies will be developing a “SuperBattery” that will charge in just 15 seconds.

Since 2009, Skeleton Technologies has been developing its “curved graphene”-based “SkelCap” ultracapacitors, which have become well renowned in the energy storage industry for their energy-saving potential.

Now, the ultracapacitor manufacturer has announced that it has partnered up with the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), known for its work in the development of energy storage technologies and that together, they are jointly working on the development of a graphene battery that can charge in 15 seconds.

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According to Skeleton, the extremely short 15-second charge time, combined with the claim that the battery can go through hundreds of thousands of charging cycles, should make the so-called “SuperBattery” perfect for applications e-mobility applications such as Electric Vehicles (EVs) and electrified mass transport. “SuperBattery technology is a critical factor for the automotive industry,” says Taavi Madiberk, CEO of Skeleton Technologies.

The SuperBattery is based on Skeleton’s own patented “curved graphene” carbon material innovation, which is said to be the secret behind the super high performance and long life of the company’s ultracapacitors, and materials developed by KIT specifically for this project.

Curved graphene is useful for resisting stacking when it’s packed into an electrode’s structure, enabling higher power density because more graphene can fit into a smaller space. To put this into perspective, Skeleton’s ultracapacitors feature four times higher power density than those developed by competitors.

A super battery solution?

Unfortunately, Skeleton has not yet provided any further information or data on its graphene SuperBattery product. And although a 15-second charge time sounds promising, we know nothing of the battery’s energy density, how much energy can be transferred in this short amount of time, and whether it’s something that has yet been achieved outside of a controlled laboratory environment.

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That being said, Skeleton’s expertise in cutting-edge ultracapacitor technology, combined with KIT’s rich background in materials research and development, could well lead to the creation of next-gen energy storage technologies such as this SuperBattery, which itself may be an effective remedy for problems currently faced by e-mobility applications such as battery degradation and slow charging times. “Skeleton is both flexible and big enough to develop a new process, transfer our knowledge into a product and bring it to the market,” said Maximilian Fichtner, Research Unit Leader at KIT.

“We are delighted to have signed the SuperBattery development deal with Karlsruhe Institute of Technology and combine forces to bring to market a technology that will blow existing EV charging solutions out of the water,” Madiberk added.

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