[Courtesy of SKC]
SEOUL -- SK nexilis, a subsidiary of SKC, a chemical material unit of South Korea's SK Group, has acquired technology to produce an ultra-high strength copper foil product for electric vehicle batteries. The new product can withstand more than twice the pulling force compared to existing standard products.
Battery foils made of aluminum and copper are used as anodes and cathodes for secondary batteries. Foils work as the bridge between external components and internal lithium-ion transports. High-strength copper foil enhances the price competitiveness and capacity. of batteries.
SK nexilis said it has secured technology for the mass production of ultra-high strength copper foils with high heat resistance that can reduce the risk of defects and improve productivity. The company has a variety of copper foil products to meet the various needs of customers.
The anode material of batteries undergoes a process of coating graphite and silicon. Fast coating speed and high temperature can increase price competitiveness but the risk of defects also increases. High-strength copper foils are advantageous in reducing the risk of defects.
"As the high capacity and productivity improvement of secondary batteries for electric vehicles become important, the high-strength copper foil market is also expected to grow more than 10 times faster than now in a few years," an unnamed SK nexilis official said in a statement on August 2.
SK nexilis has strived to establish a global production system. In July 2022, a ground-breaking ceremony was held at an industrial base in Stalowa Wola in southeastern Poland to build a thin copper foil plant with an annual production capacity of 50,000 tons. When completed in the first half of 2024, it would be the biggest copper foil plant in Europe.
SK nexilis aims to establish an annual production system of 250,000 tons in South Korea, Malaysia, Europe and North America by 2025.
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