Many people are unaware that almost all of today's lithium-ion batteries have a liquid component: A "liquid electrolyte."
Its famous brother - the solid electrolyte - is still in development (solid composites, polymers, ceramics or hybrids). So while the battery world marvels at countless research successes on cathode and anode, electrolytes in general seem to be somewhat off the radar - as long as solid-state batteries are not yet on the market....
The company E-Lyte sees it quite differently! The company specifically manufactures and continues to develop liquid electrolytes. E-Lyte already offers thousands of different electrolyte formulations, tailor-made for specific anode and cathode chemistries (NMC, LFP, sodium-ion batteries).
Dr. Kolja Beltrop (founder E-Lyte) emphasizes in the podcast that electrolyte properties can be modified and customized in many ways. These include both flammability, toxicity, price, sustainability, stability and lifetime. Battery researcher Dr. Andreas Hofmann (KIT) concurs: The electrolyte is probably the most underestimated component of the battery. Small spoiler: Even larger cell manufacturers almost always buy this component instead of producing it themselves. Hear why that's the case in the podcast.
Links: https://e-lyte.de/ | https://www.iam.kit.edu/wk/21_1556.php
