Projects

Graphite Resilience For lithium-Ion baTtery anodes through a sustainable European End-to-End supply chain

Coordinator:

RINA Consulting SPA

Description

Graphite serves as the common choice for the anode in lithium-ion batteries. The EU-funded GR4FITE3 project aims to establish a sustainable end-to-end supply chain for European industrial graphite and carbon products. This is specifically targeted towards anode active materials used in lithium-ion batteries designed for electric vehicles and power sources like solar and wind farms. The supply chain encompasses responsible mining, energy efficient upgrading, and the incorporation of recycled and synthetic graphite, as well as silicon nanoparticles. These elements combine to form a distinctive anode active material.

The consortium is composed of 10 partner organisations spanning six European countries, bridging the gap between industry and academia. The beneficiaries of this endeavour are an electric bus manufacturer and a utility grid developer.

Objectives

The project GR4FITE3 aims to reach Graphite Resilience For lithium-Ion baTtery anodes through a sustainable European End-to-End supply chain. This supply chain includes environmentally responsible European mining of natural crystalline flake graphite from Europe’s largest natural graphite resource, highly innovative, continuous and low energy input upgrading of the mined ore, adding recycled and fully repaired for reuse synthetic graphite and optionally silicon nanoparticles to compose a unique anode active material’s particle architecture, making the high density anodes, creating the cells, developing battery modules, certifying the lithium-ion batteries for safety and viability, and ultimately using these products by the OEMs including an established European electric bus manufacturer and a utility grid developer, among others.

The purpose of GR4FITE3 project is to demonstrate the creation of a sustainable supply chain for the European industrial graphite and carbon products for specific use as anode active materials in Lithium-Ion batteries designed for applications in electric vehicles and power sources for utilities, such as solar and wind farms. This project is going to combine the efforts of ten partner organisations from six European nations, employing both industry and academia. There are also four OEMs and five supporting organisations who have expressed their interest in tracking project’s progress and part-taking in a tangible manner in commercialization efforts associated with GR4FITE3 projects’ outcomes. With this larger group of stakeholders, the project spreads its reach to as many as ten countries and three continents, ensuring its global outreach from the very start.

Discover the GR4FIT3 project