Composite current collector: A new type of material that combines high safety, low cost, and ultra-thinness.
The composite current collector adopts the sandwich structure of "metal-PET PP polymer material-metal", which replaces the traditional aluminum foil and copper foil as the cathode and anode materials of the battery, which has the advantages of low cost, high safety, long life and high energy density. 1) High safety: In recent years, spontaneous combustion accidents of electric vehicles caused by battery thermal runaway are one of the core problems of new energy vehicle safety. The polymer substrate in the middle of the composite current collector has flame retardant properties, which can melt quickly before thermal runaway, and the battery damage is limited to the puncture site to form a "point break", and can alleviate the compressive stress caused by lithium dendrite growth, thereby delaying the short circuit of the battery. 2) High specific energy: In order to improve the energy density of the battery and prolong the battery life, the lithium battery copper foil has shown a trend of lightening and thinning in recent years. The copper thickness in the composite copper foil is reduced by 66 compared with the 6 m copper foil67%, the thickness of aluminum in composite aluminum foil is reduced by 80% compared with 10 m aluminum foil.
The composite current collector middle layer is made of lightweight polymer material, which is about 50% lower than that of pure metal current collector, which can effectively improve the energy density of the battery. 3) Low cost: The raw material cost of traditional copper foil accounts for about 83%, while the raw material cost of composite copper foil accounts for about 31%, and the equipment cost accounts for up to 50% due to the initial stage of industrialization. Under the condition of complete technology, it is expected to achieve 4Less than 5 yuan per square meter, compared with traditional copper foil, it is expected to reduce the manufacturing cost by 40%.
The composite current collector adopts a new process, which gives rise to investment opportunities on the equipment side. The technical route for the preparation of composite aluminum foil has been very clear, and the vacuum evaporation coating dry process is mainly used. i.e. in thickness 45～6.The surface of 0 m PET PP substrate is coated with a layer of 1 m aluminum film on both sides by vacuum evaporation. At present, there are a variety of routes in the preparation process of composite copper foil, including one-step method (chemical deposition method, vacuum magnetron sputtering, vacuum evaporation method), two-step method (vacuum magnetron sputtering + water electroplating) and three-step method (vacuum magnetron sputtering + vacuum evaporation + water electroplating). The core equipment includes vacuum coating equipment including vacuum evaporation, vacuum magnetron sputtering, and water plating equipment. In addition, after the application of composite current collectors, the preparation of lithium batteries will have an additional tab transfer welding process using ultrasonic high-speed rolling welding technology, which brings a deterministic demand for ultrasonic rolling welding equipment.
Industrialization is gradually approaching, and the equipment link is expected to usher in a market of 10 billion.
Since the beginning of this year, GAC Aion magazine battery 20. CATL Kirin batteries are made of composite current collector materials, Kirin batteries have been installed with ZEEKR 001 and 009, and Wenjie M9 may also apply composite current collectors, and the industrialization trend is becoming more and more clear. From the perspective of the current situation of the industrial chain, a variety of technical routes of composite copper foil currently coexist, and players have entered the game one after another to jointly explore the commercialization path. 1) At the substrate end, due to the weak acid and alkali resistance of PET, the composite copper foil substrate may be switched from PET to PP due to the high temperature cycle diving in the test. 2) On the process equipment side, the two-step method of "magnetron sputtering" + "water plating" is gradually becoming the mainstream of the industry, and has become the mainstream process route of composite copper foil material factories with rapid progress and large capacity planning such as Baoming Technology and Nali New Materials. 3) Based on the current mainstream two-step process of composite copper foil, it is estimated that the total market space of magnetron sputtering + electroplating equipment + ultrasonic rolling welding equipment will reach 14.3 billion yuan in 2025.
Investment suggestion: The continuous development of battery technology superimposes the cost reduction needs of battery enterprises, drives the continuous update and iteration of technology in all links of the power battery industry chain, and equipment companies are expected to usher in new development opportunities.
At present, the composite current collector is on the eve of industrialization from 0 to 1, the commercialization of composite aluminum foil is progressing fast but it is difficult to reduce costs, and there are still differences in the technical route of composite copper foil. It is recommended that the most deterministic ultrasonic rolling welding equipment manufacturer Jiaocheng Ultrasonic, Dongwei Technology, which has the mass production capacity of composite copper foil two-step core water plating equipment, and pays attention to one-step process equipment manufacturers Dawson Co., Ltd. and Sanfu Xinke.
This is an abridged excerpt from the report, the original PDF of the report
"Machinery and Equipment-Machinery and Equipment Industry Composite Current Collector: Dawn is Approaching, Equipment First-Yinhe**-20231226 [Page 27]".
Report**: Value Catalog