2024 Fraunhofer Seminar at the Detroit Battery Show

Schedule at a Glance

10-10:40 a.m.  Session 1:

Battery Disassembling, Recycling Processes and Recovering of Critical Raw Materials ​

Anwar Al Assadi (IPA),​ Guinevere Giffin (ISC)

Fraunhofer is advancing automated disassembly systems, which are key to enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of recycling, especially for batteries with different designs and chemistries . Direct battery recycling is a key strategy to maximize sustainability and geopolitical independence along the battery value chain. Besides political regulations, high scrap rates along the entire value chain make a profound recycling concept indispensable for every stakeholder. Fraunhofer develops tailored processes for the direct recycling of lithium-ion and sodium-ion batteries, including the purification and regeneration of recycled battery materials and process water treatment. 

11-11:40 a.m. Session 2:

Rapid Prototyping and Cell Characterization in Battery Cell Development ​

Richard Röß-Ohlenroth (IGCV), Dominique Koster (IFAM)

In the fast-evolving world of battery technology, achieving a competitive edge requires a streamlined and adaptable approach to development. Our focus is on accelerating battery cell development: From rapid prototyping up to small batch production for various chemistries and cell formats. Emphasizing production-related processing paths,  innovative test and analysis methods,  data-driven diagnostics and AI for quality and health management.​

1-1:40 p.m. Session 3:

Shaping the Future of Dry Battery Electrode Processing​

Christoph Leyens (IWS), Jannes Ophey (ISIT)

Traditional solvent-based electrode coating processes are space- and energy-intensive. Fraunhofer's innovative dry coating technology eliminates the need for solvents, while keeping a high process speed and providing scalability. Dry-coating technologies also support the production of high-loaded / thicker electrodes, enabling new fields of application and resulting all in all in a significant cost saving as well as a reduced environmental impact.​

2-2:40 p.m. Session 4:

Innovative Laser Processes  in Battery Module Packaging,  Manufacturing ​ and Application Monitoring

Arnold Gillner (ILT), Foelke Purr (FhUSA)

Advancements in battery technology necessitate innovations in module packaging and manufacturing processes to enhance performance and efficiency. Fraunhofer uses highly efficient laser processes for the construction of battery modules or battery packs – from laser joining of electrical contacts in batteries and high-power electronics up to laser welding of lightweight battery housings. New types of materials and the systematic incorporation of test and field data represent significant strides in modern battery module packaging and manufacturing. Moreover, the comprehensive monitoring, collection and evaluation of process as well as application data promotes circularity and facilitates compliance with public regulations such as the Battery Passport requirements.

3-3:40 p.m. Session 5: 

How Pilot Lines Drive Battery Technology Advancements ​

Christoph Baum (IPT)

Scaling processes, from laboratory conditions to industrial standards, is a central challenge of modern production technology. The transition from the laboratory bench to industrial production is filled with various challenges, as larger-scale effects that were not observed in the laboratory often come into play. Our approach to battery manufacturing focuses on flexible and modular pilot-line production, enabling companies to test and optimize their technologies, to scale innovations (from lab to fab), ramp-up and validate new cell concepts, or produce cells for niche applications. Furthermore, by integrating automation and digitalization, we enhance efficiency and precision throughout the battery manufacturing process. ​

Name: Anwar Al Assadi

Position: Group Leader, Robot programming for (Dis-)assembly

Company: Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA

Anwar Al Assadi studied renewable energy and power engineering with a focus on battery technology, mechanics, and data analysis at the University of Stuttgart and ETH Zurich. In 2018, he joined Fraunhofer IPA and is currently a PhD candidate at the University of Stuttgart. Since 2023, he has been leading the group of robot programming for (dis)assembly at Fraunhofer IPA, where he developed the track for robot-based disassembly in the context of the circular economy. He is also working on machine learning techniques to accelerate the disassembly. His passion is application-driven research and the development of robot-based (dis)assembly to enable high-quality and cost-oriented production.

Name: Christoph Baum

Position: Head of the Fraunhofer US Competence Center Battery Production

Company: Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology IPT  

Dr.-Ing. Christoph Baum is head of the Fraunhofer US Competence Center Battery Production since 2024. Between 2018-2024, he has been the managing director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology IPT. He studied mechanical engineering in Aachen, Málaga (Spain) and Beijing (China), specializing in design and development. In addition to his diploma in engineering from RWTH Aachen University, he graduated with a Master of Science degree from Tsinghua University (China). In January 2017 he received his doctorate in engineering from RWTH Aachen University with his dissertation "Process and machine development for multi-step micro hot stamping", for which he was awarded the Borchers Medal of RWTH Aachen University. Christoph Baum has been working at the Fraunhofer IPT since September 2006 and was responsible for the "Center for Precision and Microtechnology (ZPM)" between 2008 and 2010. In 2010, Christoph Baum became head of the "High-precision and specialist machines" group and, from 2013, head of the "Ultra-precision machines " group. From January 2015 to June 2016 he was head of the "Ultra Precision technology and plastics replication" department and from July 2016 to the end of May 2018 head of the "Precision Machines" department at the Fraunhofer IPT. As coordinator of several international research projects, Christoph Baum developed various technologies for the microstructuring of large surfaces and expanded the competence of the Fraunhofer IPT into the field of continuous roll-to-roll production. Christoph Baum is co-founder of the Fraunhofer spin-off Polyscale GmbH & Co. KG and since July 2016 Managing Director of the "Forschungsgemeinschaft Ultrapräzisionstechnik e.V.

Name: Arnold Gillner

Position: Department Manager Business Development

Company: Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology ILT

Prof. Dr. Arnold Gillner has studied Physics in Darmstadt and made his PhD in Mechanical Engineering at the RWTH Aachen University. Since 1985 he is working as a scientist and department manager at the Fraunhofer-Institute for Laser Technology. He was working as a department manager for ablation and joining with more than 55 scientists on industrial laser processes for macro and micro joining, packaging, micro and nano structuring, polymer applications and Life Science applications. Since October 2022 he is working as a department manager for business development in the fields of energy, mobility, electronics, aerospace and health. He has published more than 200 papers and hold more than 20 patents on laser specific processes and devices.

Name: Guinevere Giffin

Position: Scientific Head 

Company: Fraunhofer Institute for Silicate Research and Julius Maximilians University Würzburg ISC

Guinevere Giffin is currently the Scientific Head of the Fraunhofer R&D Center Electromobility Bavaria at Fraunhofer ISC and is finishing her habilitation at the University of Würzburg. Since earning her PhD at the University of Oklahoma in 2009, Dr. Giffin has worked in the field of electrochemical energy conversion and storage at the University of Padova, MEET Battery Center at University of Münster and the Helmholtz Institute Ulm. Her research focuses on the elucidation of structure-property-process relationships of materials and components for lithium-ion, sodium-ion and solid-state batteries, supercapacitors and during battery recycling. 

Name: Dominique Koster 

Position: Project Manager, Department of Electrical Energy Storage

Company: Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials IFAM

Dr.-Ing. Dominique Koster studied Chemistry at Ruhr-University Bochum and received her Ph.D. in Electrochemistry from the University of Bremen in 2019, focusing on dynamic impedance spectroscopy. She is currently a project manager at the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials (IFAM) in Bremen. In the department of Electrical Energy Storage, Dr. Koster is responsible for developing and implementing a comprehensive digitization strategy to optimize the efficient and sustainable use of battery data. Her work primarily involves creating digital tools and services for cell diagnostics, with a particular emphasis on data-driven methods to estimate the state of health (SoH) of batteries.

Name: Christoph Leyens

Position: Director

Company: Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology IWS

Prof. Dr.-Ing. Christoph Leyens studied physical metallurgy and materials technology at RWTH Aachen, Germany, where he earned his diploma in 1993 and his Ph.D. in 1997. He is currently a full professor for materials science and engineering at TU Dresden, Germany, and director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology, Dresden.

Prof. Leyens has covered a wide range of research topics with a focus on high temperature and lightweight materials, surface technology and additive manufacturing. He has published more than 300 papers, 16 books and book chapters and holds eleven patents.

Name: Jannes Ophey

Position: Project Manager

Company: Fraunhofer Institute for Silicon Technology ISIT

Jannes Ophey has been a research associate and project manager at the Fraunhofer Institute for Silicon Technology ISIT in the "Battery Systems for Special Applications" group since 2011. 

Since the beginning of 2022, he has also been Head of Group of the Manufacturing Technology Department in the newly established Business Unit Battery Systems FAB-SH (Research Center for Applied Battery Technology Schleswig-Holstein). 

He received his diploma in chemistry from the Christian-Albrechts University of Kiel in 2006 and worked as a research assistant at the Chair of Inorganic Chemistry of Prof. Bensch from 2006 to 2011. 

His current research focuses on the tailored further development of classical lithium-ion batteries and furthermore on the optimization and development of novel manufacturing processes. 

Name: Foelke Purr

Position: Transatlantic Project Coordinator

Company: Fraunhofer USA Center of the Midwest CMW

Foelke Purr is a Transatlantic Project Coordinator at Fraunhofer USA, Center Midwest (CMW), with a special focus on transatlantic Fraunhofer projects for energy storage systems. Foelke joined CMW in 2023 after working for the Fraunhofer Institute for Surface Engineering and Thin Films (Braunschweig, Germany), where her focus was on electrochemical modelling as well as on lab-scale electrode/ separator coating processes for all-solid-state batteries.

After studying chemical and biological engineering in Braunschweig, Germany, and Budapest, Hungary, she worked as a research assistant concurrently at the Institute of Microtechnology (TU Braunschweig, Germany) and the Max-Planck-Institute for Biophysical Chemistry (Göttingen, Germany). In June 2021, she received her Ph.D. in mechanical engineering on the development of an optofluidic microsystem for biosensing.

Name: Richard Röß-Ohlenroth

Position:    Research Associate

Company: Fraunhofer Institute for Casting, Composite and Processing Technology IGCV

Dr. rer. nat. Richard Röß-Ohlenroth studied materials science at the University of Augsburg in Germany, completing his master's degree in 2017. He earned his doctorate in Chemistry in 2023 from the same university for his research on triazolate-based coordination polymers, conducted under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Dirk Volkmer at the Chair of Solid-State and Materials Chemistry. Since 2023, he has been working as a research associate in the group for integrated manufacturing processes for battery cells at Fraunhofer IGCV in Augsburg, where he specializes in the formation, testing, and safety of novel battery technologies.