In May TU Delft organized a workshop for the BatteryNL PhD and postdoc researchers on the fabrication of cathode slurries and (liquid and solid electrolyte based) lab cells. The researchers of the BatteryNL project (www.batterynl.nl) (NWA.1389.20.089) focus on realizing safer next-generation batteries with higher energy densities and longer cycle life.
Besides that it was interesting to experience the experimental work of the others in the consortium, the workshop contributed to the discussion we started several months ago, aimed at aligning the experimental methods within BatteryNL to get reproducible results from different labs. Being in the lab together resulted in lively discussions on practical details, that are never mentioned in papers but can have a significant effect on the outcome of the experiment. Some solutions from the TU Delft lab were quite surprising: who would have thought that a heat gun, A4 printing paper and plastic zip bags could be useful when making a battery? The workshop was concluded with a nice group dinner. Many thanks to Frans Ooms for organizing the workshop, and to the involved battery researchers at TU Delft for the fruitful discussions!
Meike Pieters (TU/e)
