Parametergestützte Analyse laserbasierter Trocknungsverfahren für die effiziente Herstellung von Batterieelektroden

Since their market introduction in 1991, lithium-ion batteries have grown in importance almost unnoticed and are now one of the symbols of our modern society. For the majority of the world's population, they have become part of everyday life. This trend is being reinforced in many places by the disruptive shift towards locally emission-free vehicles as part of the transport revolution. Maintaining competitiveness, for example by means of modern production technologies, therefore represents an important criterion for the success of battery cell production facilities established for this purpose. Due to the high energy demand that is currently required to dry the solvents applied during electrode production, the optimisation of this process step offers a promising approach towards gaining advantages over competing productions. Currently, the convection drying process represents the most frequently used industrial drying process. The stand-alone or complementary use of laser-based drying processes opens up a promising approach for optimising the throughput, costs and quality of this process step. Promising examples of modern laser-based drying processes are currently represented by diode lasers as well as the VCSEL (vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser) technology. The main subject of this research thereby lies in the parameter-based analysis of these two drying technologies as part of an experimental test study to derive recommendations for implementation in series production. For this purpose, the most important theoretical principles of lithium-ion technology as well as the current state of the art of the underlying manufacturing processes are initially described in detail. Subsequently, the main subject of this dissertation focuses on the investigation of the potential requirements under which the laser drying process of electrodes can be integrated into the series production of lithium-ion batteries while maintaining or improving essential product and process properties. To this end, a description of the underlying test setups as well as the analysed input and output variables is initially provided. Alongside stand-alone laser drying, a combined investigation of the diode laser and VCSEL systems in so-called hybrid application scenarios is also carried out for this purpose. The evaluation of the test results is followed by the final derivation of recommendations for the scaled implementation of the analysed laser drying systems. The conceptual design of the implementation recommendations is thereby based on the problem-solving process of VDI 2221-1. In the course of the target analysis, the throughput, cost and quality optimisation of existing production plants are focused on as the primary objectives of the recommendations. Lastly, as part of a final evaluation, key solution aspects are reflected upon and further related research deficits are indicated.