Tests show new LMFP battery cathode to extend EV range

Conventional Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) chemistries experience a reduction in useable capacity when the battery is operated at high discharge conditions, such as during motorway driving or in high-power applications including electric mining vehicles.

Tests carried out by Qinetiq have demonstrated that Integrals Power’s LMFP cells retain a higher percentage of their nominal capacity than LFP under these conditions.

The LMFP cells are said to have retained 99 per cent of their original capacity at 2C (30 minutes discharge time), and 95 per cent at 5C (12 minutes discharge time). At 10C (six minutes discharge time) capacity retention was 60 per cent.

Qinetiq’s assessments follow other third-party testing in 2024 that showed Integrals Power had achieved the breakthrough of incorporating a Manganese content of 80 per cent and delivering nearly 150mAh/gr specific capacity, while overcoming the reduction in energy density that usually occurs at such high levels.

As a result, Milton Keynes-based Integrals Power said it has demonstrated that its LMFP material can be used to make cells that will enable battery packs to deliver an optimal balance of high performance, long range, and long life that exceeds the capability of Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) but at less cost and less reliance on critical minerals than Nickel Cobalt Manganese (NCM).