SYDNEY, March 10, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Global renewable energy storage innovator Gelion (AIM:GELN) has acquired a world-leading IP portfolio of over 450 Lithium Sulfur and Silicon Anode ("LiSiS") patents which, in combination with Gelion's existing IP, may create the ability to develop and manufacture the world's most advanced battery technology here in Australia.
Gelion CEO John Wood
Lithium sulfur is widely acknowledged as the next dominant battery technology, meaning the acquisition accelerates Gelion's efforts to produce a battery with significantly higher gravimetric density (energy-to-weight ratio), greater safety, and lower costs.
The LiSiS patents, spanning 82 patent families, include solid and liquid electrolytes, disordered rock salt, electrode formulation, and battery materials recycling.
This places Gelion and Australian research firmly at the forefront of the global battery industry.
The acquisition will help secure the solutions required to pursue and expedite the development of Gelion's lithium sulfur and lithium silicon sulfur technologies, which have the potential to create multiple next-generation applications for its high energy-to-weight ratio batteries.
It will help Gelion to move rapidly and methodically from research to commercialisation, and provide Australia with an opportunity to develop upstream and downstream manufacturing capabilities that benefit local industries.
The broad IP portfolio was acquired with a special focus on lithium sulfur, and includes technology transfer packages, cell designs and manufacturing protocols for Li-S cells, market and portfolio analysis, and manufacturing design and cost models.
John Wood, CEO of Gelion, said: "The importance of this acquisition cannot be understated, not just to Gelion but also to Australian research and manufacturing as a whole. Lithium Sulfur is widely tipped as the next big stage of the Lithium energy storage industry, and with this IP portfolio, Gelion intends to build the world's best battery.
"This positions Australian research and development at the front edge of the global battery wave. We now own the technology to become a renewable energy super power.
"Combining this IP portfolio with Gelion's ongoing Lithium Sulphur and Lithium Silicon Sulfur technologies can significantly advance the battery industry's efforts to achieve higher gravimetric energy density while reducing cost and increasing safety. This IP portfolio will help in our objectives toward achieving a protective moat for Gelion's technology."
Gelion is acquiring the IP from multinational speciality chemicals and sustainable technologies and FTSE 250 company, Johnson Matthey.
Gelion ("gel: ion", www.gelion.com) is a global renewable-energy storage innovator. By designing and manufacturing the world's best batteries for stationary and mobile energy, we support the transition to a sustainable economy while delivering value for customers and investors.
Stationary storage – Gelion Endure: the sustainable energy storage solution
Gelion has developed patented technology for a breakthrough zinc-bromide battery to support the transition to a carbon neutral economy by 2050. The technology is a low-cost, robust, safe and recyclable alternative to lithium-ion and lead-acid batteries making them ideally suited for the expanding energy storage market.
Gelion's zinc-bromide gel battery uses non-flow technology, which is scalable, can deliver 100% depth of discharge and has a higher temperature tolerance and longer duration discharge than competing lead-acid and lithium-ion batteries. With applications at grid scale as well as in agriculture, mining, water management and irrigation the battery is also highly adaptable for off-grid use.
Mobile storage - Tomorrow's transport systems will rely on mobile renewable energy.
Gelion is also developing performance additives to improve the safety, longevity and energy density of lithium-based batteries for mobile applications. Using nanotechnology, Gelion's lithium-silicon and lithium-sulfur additives will help power the EV and e-aviation markets.
Gelion was spun-out from the University of Sydney in 2015 by Professor Thomas Maschmeyer, one of the world's leading chemists, Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science and recipient of the Australian Prime Minister's Prize for Innovation 2020, that country's highest honour for scientific entrepreneurship.
The Company's ESG credentials are strongly aligned to six of the UN's 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
Gelion's shares are listed on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange and it received the Green Economy Mark at IPO in November 2022 recognising its commitment to energy transition.
