Salient Energy (Salient) was awarded California Energy Commission grant EPC-19-040 (project) to bring its Zinc-ion (Zn-ion) cell technology from component demonstration in a laboratory environment to the technology demonstration stage. The project included installing and testing the Zn-ion cell technology in a 10-kilowatt-hour residential energy storage system.
While not without its challenges, this project advanced Salient’s Zn-ion cell technology closer to commercialization. Salient’s technology is the first Zn-based battery to utilize Zn-ions on both the cathode and anode sides of the cell in a non-toxic, near-neutral, aqueous electrolyte, thus eliminating the possibility of thermal runaway. The project enabled Salient to increase cell capacity, improve production capability, and both develop and test a 10-kilowatt-hour residential energy storage system using Salient’s Zn-ion cell technology.
With the advances made in this project and further research and development going forward, Salient Energy plans to introduce a lower cost, safer, and more sustainable alternative to current Lithium-ion energy storage.
