KIC InnoEnergy backs graphene ultracapacitors
KIC InnoEnergy has backed Skeleton Technologies’ graphene ultracapacitors with a €4m investment.
The money will be used to further develop the competitive advantage of the ultracapacitors, high-energy storage devices with greatly increased power density and longer lifecycles than batteries.
Skeleton Technologies’ ultracapacitors are the only such devices to use a patented graphene material, carbide-derived carbon (CDC), in their manufacture, which allows them to deliver twice the energy density and five times the power density of their competitors. The Global Cleantech 100 company aims to reach the ambitious target of 20Wh/kg energy density for its technology by 2020.
“Energy storage is one of the key issues facing the European energy sector,” said Kenneth Johansson, CEO of KIC InnoEnergy Sweden. “Getting it right will help with everything from smart grids and smart buildings to ensuring better integration of renewables in electricity networks across the continent.
“We’re excited to engage with Skeleton Technologies because we believe that their product is a potential game-changer in the energy storage space. The future need for energy storage can hardly be underestimated, and we look forward to embracing this opportunity through the development of this technology.”
The investment was made as part of the €9.8m Series B financing secured by Skeleton Technologies in 2015. Work will now begin to develop electrodes that can fully capitalise on the performance advantages offered by CDC. These electrodes will then be integrated into smaller modules, reducing both the weight and cost of the final energy storage system.
Once work is complete, Skeleton Technologies intends to offer three times the performance/weight ratio of current market-leading products at the same price. This is expected to play a significant role in accelerating the adoption of ultracapacitors across transport, industrial equipment and grid applications.
The development work will be undertaken in collaboration with partners who will independently evaluate the performance of the ultracapacitor modules, including Finnish electric drive train manufacturer Visedo OY.
The ultracapacitors are set to be launched into orbit as part of a European Space Agency project and have been incorporated into the world’s first kinetic recovery system for freight vehicles, as well as being available in an engine state module for trucks and as part of a hybrid unmanned ground vehicle for defence applications.
