French R&D startup Novacium – partner of Canadian silica- and silicon-based materials tech company HPQ Silicon – has demonstrated the performance of its GEN3 silicon-based anode materials. At 900 cycles, 18650 batteries made with Novacium’s GEN3 silicon-based anode materials are still delivering a capacity of more than 3,100 mAh, retaining an average of 82% of their initial capacity.
According to HPQ Silicon, Novacium’s GEN3 silicon-anode material batteries demonstrate exceptional capacity and durability compared to other leading commercial 18650 battery cells at 900 cycles. They achieve high average Coulombic Efficiency of 99.88% and deliver a 31% cumulative energy gain over graphite benchmark batteries.
The graphite benchmark batteries, made with high-grade artificial graphite, delivered about 2,400 Ah cumulative energy, while the Novacium GEN3 batteries delivered a cumulative energy return of about 3,200 Ah—representing a more then 30% cumulative energy gain.
“These results at 900 cycles confirm that Novacium has successfully developed a unique capability to produce advanced silicon-based materials. When blended with high-grade artificial graphite, these materials integrate seamlessly into commercial batteries (18650, 21700, 26650, and 4680), delivering world-class capacity and durability. Our analysis of the results concludes that targeted process refinements could unlock even greater performance gains and further minimize long-term degradation, while maintaining compatibility with existing manufacturing processes, paving the way for next-generation lithium-ion batteries.”
Dr. Jed Kraiem, COO of Novacium
Graph 1A illustrates the average capacity (in mAh) of two 18650 batteries made utilizing Novacium’s GEN3 silicon-based material (yellow line) compared to the average capacity of the 100% high-grade artificial graphite benchmark batteries (blue line). At 900 cycles, the two GEN3 batteries demonstrate an average capacity of about 3,200 mAh, which exceeds the graphite benchmark’s 2,604 mAh by 21%.
Graph 1B presents the relative capacity retention of two 18650 batteries utilizing Novacium’s GEN3 material (yellow line) compared to the 100% high-grade artificial graphite benchmark batteries (blue line) over 900 cycles.
The company highlights the Novacium’s GEN3 advantage by comparing it with leading commercial 18650 battery cells. Panasonic NCR18650GA (3,500 mAh) retains 70% capacity after around 300 cycles, LG MJ1 (3,500 mAh) retains between 70% and 80% capacity between 300 and 400 cycles, while Samsung 30Q (3,000 mAh) retains around 60% capacity after 250 cycles.
