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PV3 Technologies specialise in the manufacturing and development of electrochemical materials. They offer a wide selection of catalysts, battery materials and coated electrodes for the full range of electrochemical processes.
Company

PV3 Technologies Ltd.

Industry

Advanced materials

Electrochemical materials

Batteries

Date engaged

June 2019

Contact

Website

Twitter

Background

What does PV3 do?

PV3 Technologies specialise in the manufacturing and development of electrochemical materials. We offer a wide selection of catalysts, battery materials and coated electrodes for the full range of electrochemical processes.

Who are your typical customers?

Our clients come from a range of industries, usually looking to improve their products through the use of our materials. We don’t really have a ‘typical’ customer. Some are at an early stage with their technology development, others are very mature.

How did you discover the GEIC?

We were already aware of the GEIC through having dealt with some of the key staff previously. 

The challenge ...
Why did you initially engage with the GEIC?

Two years ago we secured funding from Innovate UK’s Faraday Challenge to develop Li-ion battery materials. Working within this new field, we found new ideas we wanted to explore and needed a characterisation partner. Visiting the GEIC made us realise they had the capacity we needed.

What are you looking to improve in the product?

We are looking to compare the effects of graphene-based materials on next-gen battery cathodes to understand where performance improvements can be made.

What do you hope graphene will deliver for your business?

We suspect graphene can unlock some additional performance benefits from our new materials programme.

“PV3 are committed to developing the latest in electrochemical materials and working with the GEIC. Our partnership has enabled access to skills and capabilities that complement our own. We could not deliver this programme without the GEIC.”

– Dr. David Hodgson, CEO

The engagement ...
How did the company engage with the GEIC?

Our staff worked closely with the team at the GEIC to get our products into the centre and tested.

What exploratory work and testing was completed?

The team performed a series of battery cycling tests to understand how performance was affected over time.

Describe any prototypes that were created

PV3 supplied their materials in kind and GEIC staff built and tested a series of coin-cell batteries.

The outcome ...
As a result of the phase 1 work, what was produced?

We produced a series of working coin-cell batteries combining our existing technology with graphene.

What findings were discovered from the project?

Our early test data shows some really promising signs of how graphene can enhance the coin-cell battery.

How will these finding help commercialise the product?

What we want to do is to investigate integrating graphene into our materials at an earlier stage of development, so that the additional benefits become an inherent part of the product.

Next steps ...
What steps are required to take this to a commercial product?

We’re now looking to run a longer-term collaborative project with the GEIC on improving battery performance across a number of form factors.

How has engaging with the GEIC prepped you?

Without the people and facilities at the GEIC it would have been extremely difficult to perform this work. We were able to conduct these early tests in a matter of weeks.

What are the timescales to get to a commercial product?

It’s likely that the next phase will take around 6 months and we will then be in a position to understand how quickly we could bring new products to market.