The Future, Faster

Thinking Outside the Battery 

The ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit is an annual event that brings together innovators, investors, and government representatives to discuss and discover the latest developments in energy research and technology. This year’s theme was “The Future, Faster,” highlighting the urgent need for rapid innovation to address the pressing environmental challenges facing our planet and humanity. Dr. Evelyn Wang, the head of ARPA-E, called on attendees to “transform tomorrow” by accelerating the deployment of cutting-edge technologies and solutions. Iontra was present—and we are answering Dr. Wang’s call to action. 

While it is certainly critical to look towards the future to develop new, innovative solutions to our energy and environmental challenges, it is equally important to focus on the innovations that are ready to be commercialized today. This is especially true when it comes to the urgent need to reduce our carbon emissions and shift towards cleaner sources of energy. 

One challenge, however, is that the approach to a greener, battery-powered future, often comes down to the same sought-after solutions for next-gen batteries: new chemistries, new materials, and reimagined battery components. But this equation is going to take many years, if not a generation, to develop, prove, and get to market.  

Should we chase the dream of better batteries? Yes, by all accounts, yes. Our global challenges must be an all-solutions-on-deck approach. But we need to think outside of the proverbial box, or in this case, think outside the battery, to charge control, if we want to achieve the future, faster. 

ARPA-E Director, Dr. Evelyn Wang, called on Summit participants to “transform tomorrow” by delivering “the future, faster.”

Iontra: Leading the Way 

Iontra’s advanced battery charging optimization technology dramatically extends cycle life, increases charging speeds and capacity utilization, supports cold weather charging, and makes charging safer overall. Our technology sits outside of the battery, requiring no changes to the batteries themselves and little, if any, change to the charge control unit or other hardware.  

With a predictive and adaptive approach to charging, Iontra’s charge control technology is constantly adapting to the battery’s state of health, understanding and adjusting thousands of times per second to ensure that the primary causes of degradation—plating and dendrite formation—are reduced, if not eliminated. And we are doing this now. It’s proven. 

By embracing advanced charge control optimization, Iontra is helping to create a more sustainable future with a more secure mineral supply chain. Think about it: if we can double the cycle life of all lithium batteries, we can reduce the need for aggressive mineral mining, reduce waste in our landfills, and move our economy, more quickly, to electrification. 

The Future, Today 

People often think the “moon shot” is something that must be far off in the eternally distant future and requires exotic new materials, innovative manufacturing technologies or billions of dollars to create transformative change. It does not have to be that way.   

By thinking outside the battery, Iontra’s advanced battery control optimization technology is making profound and transformational change today – dramatically better performing batteries and products and a healthier, more sustainable planet.