Cold Atmospheric Plasma-Based Inspection & Real-Time Process Control of Electrode Materials to Enable High-Performance Battery Manufacturing
Project Update
This project was approved in October 2025 and executed in November 2025. Following agreement execution, the project focused on advancing the PlasmaSens™ technology from offline demonstrations toward an inline, pilot-scale inspection solution for battery electrodes. Engineering efforts progressed on sensor design requirements, data acquisition, and physics-informed machine learning models. The project continues to prepare for pilot-scale integration and demonstration in electrode manufacturing environments to enable real-time process control and optimization.
The Issue
Battery electrode manufacturing involves complex, multi-step processes where small variations can lead to defects, reduced yields, increased costs, and safety risks. Existing inline inspection technologies typically measure only one property at a time and often lack sufficient spatial resolution or require destructive or offline testing. As battery production scales, these limitations increase the likelihood that defective electrodes pass through manufacturing undetected. There is a critical need for non-destructive, real-time inspection technologies that can identify electrode defects and process variability earlier in production without disrupting throughput.
Project Innovation
The purpose of this agreement is to advance the development of an innovative real-time, high-resolution, and multi-property electrode inspection solution to the pilot-scale demonstration stage via scalable integration into commercial research and development electrode manufacturing (EM) workflows and high-volume EM lines, and to demonstrate how the inline electrode inspection solution will enable real-time process control and process optimization.
Project Goals
Project Benefits
This project improves battery manufacturing by enabling earlier detection of electrode defects and process variability, reducing waste and improving yield. The technology supports lower battery costs by improving consistency and reducing material loss during production. Enhanced inspection capabilities help reduce safety risks associated with defective batteries, including thermal runaway. By improving battery reliability and performance, the project supports broader adoption of electric vehicles and energy storage systems. These outcomes contribute to California’s clean energy, emissions reduction, and grid reliability goals.
Key Project Members
Subrecipients
Match Partners
