Prieto Battery, a 3D Li-ion battery technology company (earlier post), announced the results of its first third-party validation testing from Energy Assurance, LLC.

Specifically, Prieto had a group of fully assembled batteries containing their proprietary 3D anode tested against an array of UL (Underwriters Laboratories) and IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) standards for Li-ion chemistry. All of Prieto’s batteries had 100% success rate with zero failures.

The Prieto architecture is designed around a porous copper structure (copper foam), conformally coated by an ultra-thin polymer electrolyte and then surrounded by a cathode matrix. The result is a three-dimensionally structured lithium-ion battery composed of interpenetrating electrodes with extremely short Li⁺ diffusion distances and a power density that much greater than comparable two-dimensional architectures in use today.

These results validate the science and manufacturing methodology we’ve been working on for a long time. Besides demonstrating that our chemistry and materials are safer, it’s equally as impressive that none of the cells failed and points to an exciting pivot point in our company, one where we move from focusing on R&D to getting our first product commercialized.

—Dr. Amy Prieto, CTO and Founder of Prieto Battery

Copper antimonide (Cu₂Sb) electrodeposited onto the copper foam gives stability to the anode and has demonstrated excellent capacity over extensive cycling. The foam battery will be customizable, capable of being optimized for either power density or energy density.

Prieto Battery is betting on demand for a safer Li-ion chemistry. Prieto has two products in the pipeline that will offer solutions to the threat of fire hazards to replace current Li-ion chemistries.

The first is the newly tested 3D anode that is assembled into a full battery using a traditional liquid electrolyte; the second is a 3D solid-state cell using Prieto’s proprietary solid polymer electrolyte.

With the results of these recent tests, Prieto is launching its next round of funding to scale manufacturing of the 3D anode and accelerate the commercial prototyping of the 3D solid-state cell.

Prieto Battery Inc. was founded in June 2009 to accelerate the shift of Prieto’s innovations from the research laboratory to the commercial marketplace. The Company’s mission is to commercialize a patented 3D lithium-ion battery technology that delivers transformational performance at a competitive cost using non-toxic materials with the ability to customize shapes.

Alongside the technology, Prieto has also patented a unique electroplating manufacturing process for its battery that uses non-toxic materials and will be price competitive. Prieto’s lab and headquarters are based in Fort Collins, Colo.