Battery separator markets

There are no indications, or only vague ones, of the size of the various battery separator markets in the literature 131. A rough estimate can be deduced from the sales figures for battery systems by a rule of thumb the sales value of separators is roughly 2-5% of the sales for the battery producers. Even the data for battery markets are not uniformly gathered, however, and contain considerable uncertainties. 

There is not too much information available on the battery separator market in the literature. It is estimated that about 30% of the rechargeable lithium battery market or 1.5 billion is the size of the battery materials or components market. Battery separators for lithium batteries are about a 330 million market within the total battery components market. ° Recently, the Freedonia Group has reported that the U.S. demand for battery separators will increase to 410 million in 2007 from 237 million in 1977 and 300 million in 2002, respectively. ... 

There is not much information available on battery separator market in the literature. It is estimated that about 30% of the rechargeable lithium battery market, or... 

The lithium-ion battery separator market is dominated by three companies Asahi Kasei Corporation, Celgard (Polypore), and Tonen Chemical Nasu (Exxon-Mobil). 

The total sales value for battery systems worldwide in 1997 may amount to US 25.5 billion and the sales value for battery separators correspondingly to US 600 million Table 1 gives an estimate of the work battery market, split according to the different battery systems. 

One important market is the battery sector and polymer use here can be categorised in three distinct ways. For example the polymer may be used in the manufacture of the battery separators used in traditional cells to provide physical separation of the positive and negative plates whilst permitting electron flow through the electrolyte. Polyester and polypropylene (PP) fibres may also be used to reinforce the battery plates themselves in traditional cells. The second function is as a battery container material which must resist chemical attack by the electrolyte and give the container mechanical strength. 

Teijin Solufill Limited produces Solufill a high porosity PE engineering film formerly made by a joint venture with DSM whose interests were bought out by Teijin. Solufill is filled with a special ceramic powder. Solufill was formerly used in the manufacture of bulk multilayer ceramic capacitors but in 2005 Teijin decided to withdraw from this application due to weakening electronic component prices and a worsening market environment. However, Solupor, a sister product is being supplied for use as a battery separator. 

New markets and new requirements are driving many innovations in lithium-ion battery separators. This chapter reviews the present state of separator development for lithium-ion batteries. Note that a good review of battery separators including... 

Figure 20.2 Global market for lithium-ion battery separators (from Sumitomo 2009 Annual Report).

To further reduce weight and improve energy density, several companies are developing thin lead film electrodes in a spiral-wound construction with glass fiber separators. Already on the market for cordless electric tools, this battery technology may eventually be used in electric vehicles. 

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