VCbattery's technologies excel at detecting a wide range of defects across various applications in the electric vehicle (EV) industry. Our capabilities span the entire value chain and lifecycle of a battery, offering support from laboratory testing to production, second-use scenarios, and recycling. Here are some specific defects and features that our technologies are particularly adept at finding.

1. Overhang Inspection

Our high-performance 3D inline solution enables the automated analysis of Cathode/Anode overhang, ensuring precise measurements and identifying any deviations that could impact battery performance.

An overhang (the CAT) is already checked in every cell production today, but with severely limited accuracy and high error rates because only 2D X-ray technology is used in-line. The positioning of cathode and anode must be uniform and within defined metrological limits. If the overhang deviates from the tolerance, the performance and safety of the cell is not guaranteed. Using the measurement evaluation, the stacking accuracy can be checked in good time during production in order to intervene in the value chain as quickly as possible.

2. Foreign particles
The requirements for technical cleanliness are one of the most crucial criteria for the quality and performance of every cell manufactured. Foreign particles can occur at various points in the mechanical cell manufacturing process and enter a cell. It is possible that they have gotten in before, during the mixing process. Electrode material from production and contamination caused by welding the cell can lead to damage and limited performance of the cell. It is therefore important to specifically detect these particles and reliably within the process. Using CT analysis and the associated localization of the particle, it can be decided whether it is critical or non-critical.

3. Delamination
Delamination can occur during the coating and subsequent drying of the cathode-anode material, as well as the further mechanical production process of a battery cell. Delamination happens when the coating on the cathode or anode partially lifts or comes off completely, meaning that a uniform flow of electrons is no longer guaranteed. This results in poor performance or possibly damage to the separator. Damaged cells in production must be specifically identified and classified in order to avoid costly recalls or failures in the field. On the way to achieving the decarbonization goals, the detection of this error is a crucial criterion for the reuse of the cells, 2nd use.

4. Porosity of welds
Another key process in battery cell production is welding the cells. They must be hermetically sealed from the environment. There are clear guidelines for acceptable error sizes. The use of traditional, conventional testing methods is time-consuming and not inline-capable but is usually an outsourced process in quality assurance. An inspection of the weld seams using CT technology for pores and voids, provides security and reliable information about changes within the production process. Exact quantification, localization, and subsequent classification according to known standards can be carried out and help to avoid costly product failures.

5. Raw materials - Powder Analysis
The properties and performance of a battery are influenced by a variety of parameters. The correct selection and quality as well as purity of the raw materials used, is an immensely important issue in cell production for reasons of sustainability alone, given the scarcity of raw materials. Using high-resolution computed tomography, the shape and size of the individual grains can be analyzed and determined, from which a distribution of the microstructure can be derived.