The plants for the production of 30Ah-PHEV-1 cells will be expanded with ZellkoBatt to large-format PHEV-2 and pouch cells up to 80 Ah. (Image by Elvira Eberhardt, courtesy of ZSW).

Researchers from Germany’s Centre for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research Baden-Württemberg, known by its initials ZSW, just launched the ZellkoBatt, a project aimed at optimizing large-format lithium-ion cells for automotive applications, while cutting the costs of components as well as manufacturing processes.

In a press release, the scientists said they will apply the results of their efforts to ZSW’s pilot production line, a research lab that has been up and running since 2014 under factory-like conditions. The resultant machines and processes will then be ramped up for mass manufacturing.