Rochester startup has patented technology allowing batteries to safely discharge completely
Whether a single EV battery or millions of unused cells stacked inside warehouses, lithium-ion
batteries at rest are kept in partial states of charge — preventing their copper current collectors
from irreversibly dissolving into the surrounding electrolyte. This residual charge, however,
means any damage to the cells during transport or storage could cause that charge to be
released as heat, resulting in a fire.
This is the fundamental challenge New York-based startup Cellec Technologies is addressing
with its patented zero-volt stability approach to lithium-ion safety.
Cellec is among the seven companies participating in the second cohort of the ChargeUp
Accelerator, the nation’s first and only accelerator program exclusively focusing on batteries.
This accelerator, under the Binghamton-led initiative New Energy New York, hosts a diverse
group of battery startups and solutions, aiming to hone them into investment-ready shape.
Zero-volt security
Incorporated in 2016, Cellec specializes in technology that allows lithium-ion cells, in their
resting states, to discharge all the way down to zero — preventing the need to keep cells
partially charged without compromising functionality or performance.
“If there was an incident where a truck gets in an accident and crushes some cells, or pressure
changes on an airplane causes the internal components to move around, there’s no additional
energy stored in the cell to cause a fire or an event that could lead to damaging infrastructure or
hurting people,” said Christopher Schauerman, CEO and co-founder of Cellec.
Typically, the voltage of a battery is the difference between the voltages of the negative anodes
and positive cathodes. When they’re at the same voltage as each other, the battery voltage
measures as zero. Measuring the positive and negative parts of the battery separately
compared to a reference material, however, would yield a much higher voltage.
Simply put, these imbalanced electrodes can run high enough voltages that they cause the
copper ions within current collectors to move around — thus dissolving copper into the
electrolyte and permanently poisoning the cell. If you’ve ever had lithium-ion batteries around
the house that can no longer recharge after sitting too long, this copper dissolution is the reason
why: The cells have already self-discharged to a very low voltage.
In the lab, Cellec’s team of scientists and engineers investigated the construction of lithium-ion
batteries, determining how each component interacted with others in the system. They also pried into how different changes and balances of chemistries and materials ultimately affect the
voltage of positive and negative materials compared to a reference. From this came Cellec’s
zero-volt technology.
“Now that we knew what was affecting it, we figured out how to control it,” Schauerman said.
“And by controlling the materials in the cell and the way that it’s put together, we can actually
keep that half-cell voltage versus a lithium reference below the dissolution voltage of copper,
and never expose those materials to voltages that cause internal cell degradation.”
Having zero-volt capability is especially appealing in the defense arena, though it’s also enticing
for powering EVs and grid storage more effectively. But Cellec is not trying to replace other
battery suppliers, according to Cellec Operations Manager Chelsea Abbott.
“We don’t want to compete with other cell providers that are just making tons of them. We want
each cell that comes out — and maybe that’s 10,000 — to be that much more powerful and
make sure it’s going to do the job and perform,” she said. “Because it can be life or death in
these scenarios. You don’t want it to go wrong.”
A perfect balance
Science has established that balance is crucial for a properly functioning battery cell, and that
very love for symmetry is not only reflected in Cellec’s perfectly palindrome name, but also its
own team.
Schauerman boasts a background in physics, having spent his undergraduate career working at
the Rochester Institute of Technology’s NanoPower Research Laboratories. There, he gained
experience in nanomaterials and energy generation research. Later on, as a graduate student,
he continued working in sustainability, which brought about the natural question: what to do with
all that knowledge.
“Once the technology got to the point where it was no longer fundamental science, we decided
to package up those five patents and start a company,” Schauerman said. “It was a natural
evolution of different research activities we had going on that ultimately led to energy storage
and a lithium-ion battery company.”
Meanwhile, across from him is Abbott, who is Cellec’s operations manager and has a degree in
economics and international business from Ithaca College. Coming out of high school, she had
originally wanted to join the Air Force, continuing a family history of serving with the military.
“Even though she didn’t go into the Air Force, she’s now helping to support the Air Force
mission by providing advanced lithium-ion cells that can do things they need batteries to do, that
regular commercial cells you go and buy on Amazon can’t perform,” Schauerman said.
The pair met serendipitously. Abbott returned to Rochester, N.Y. a few years after graduating
from college, then stayed there after the COVID-19 pandemic struck. It was then that she began
thinking about seeking something more permanent in the area, happening upon Schauerman.
“I need someone to help me run a business,” he’d told her, and Abbott had readily agreed.
“Let’s do it,” she said.
Abbott quickly learned the ins and outs of everything related to batteries — not only the
technical components of a cell, but also the market built around them.
“It’s very, very important, and I can see that,” she said. “Just trying to get that out into the market
where it needs to be is what drives my passion for batteries.”
Currently, Cellec is focusing on maturing its manufacturing so it can transfer production out of
university labs and into greater factory settings. The goal is to move from making tens of cells to
thousands and eventually millions of them, all of which are stable at zero volts, with minimal
additional costs and steps.
“If we can execute on our plans, we’ll be one of the largest lithium-ion cell suppliers to the U.S.
government,” Abbott said. “Realizing those plans helps ensure that every day U.S. servicemen
and women are best equipped to achieve their missions — it helps me sleep at night.”
Keeping a business running after nurturing it from the ground-up, however, can be trying.
Continuing the spark of curiosity that drove him to invent a new technology by ensuring it lives
on makes the effort worthwhile, in Schauerman’s eyes.
“It’s a fun academic exercise if you create or learn something new and contribute to the
scientific knowledge base, but really, being involved with it for so long, I just have a drive and
motivation to make sure it goes somewhere,” he said. “I’m not just creating science for the sake
of science, but really trying to translate that science into something that people can use and can
benefit society.”
The inevitable company growth that comes with such dedication presents its own unique set of
challenges, particularly for someone like Abbott, who has made a career ensuring that others
can succeed at theirs too.
“Each time we grow, it’s good for me, and it’s hard, because it’s another thing I just take to
heart,” she said. “But the success of the company brings success for all these people who’ve
put so much into it, whether that’s tangible or intangible. There’s a fortitude that I just
appreciate, and I want to be able to give them that opportunity.”
Growing in New York
Helping field the trials that come with entrepreneurship is also ChargeUp Accelerator. For
Cellec, its time in the program has been instrumental in figuring out the proper questions and
goals to ask and meet, an awareness that’s often hard to come by when juggling the day-to-day
tasks of payroll or paperwork or actual experimental procedures.
“It’s been one of those eye-opening things where you just kick yourself a little, and I’m happy to
be doing it right here with all these resources,” Abbott said. “That makes these questions easier
to follow and start to answer.”
Moreover, though each company in the accelerator brings its own vision to the battery sector,
forging connections with people of different experiences and expertise has been similarly
beneficial. Schauerman appreciates that he can teach someone how to apply for certain grants
or secure employee healthcare, while someone else can likewise send him additional
information for the questions he has about business.
“It’s a really good group of people where we’re not just growing individually, but we’re growing
together, and growing faster than if we were doing this program on our own without any other
teams here,” he said.
Given the company’s history in the Rochester area, Schauerman sees New York State as the
ideal place to continue Cellec’s operations.
“I couldn’t imagine doing what we do in any other place than New York,” he said. “New York has
so many resources for battery companies to grow organically and access facilities, expertise
and knowledge that doesn’t exist anywhere else in the country.”
As Cellec continues to take advantage of resources in the Rochester area, it is also eyeing
potential expansion to Binghamton, due to the region’s position as a hub for energy storage.
“Binghamton set itself up really well for being that manufacturing location. Creating those
manufacturing jobs and having expertise or trained workforce through the programs that New
Energy New York is doing will help provide the labor for manufacturing that the Rochester
region won’t have,” Schauerman said. “Strategically tapping into both locations and regions
makes a lot of sense.”
Moving forward, Cellec is also undertaking new projects and research. With a $100,000
SuperBoost grant from the National Science Foundation Energy Storage Engine in Upstate New
York, Cellec will be optimizing its materials and electrodes to perform well in extreme
temperatures.
“Let’s do zero volt and really cold. Let’s do zero volt and really hot,” Schauerman said. “How can
we extend the performance range of our cells in order to achieve a truly multi-functional cell that
has more widespread application across a lot of Department of Defense-specific terrestrial and
aerospace domains?”
It’s a whole barrage of experimentation once again, tweaking temperature parameters and
measuring battery performance as the environment goes from hot to cold and cold to hot.
Chasing answers and fueled with curiosity, the scientists and researchers of Cellec are hard at
work to deliver what will hopefully comprise a new generation of better batteries and innovation.
As for Abbott, though not a battery scientist by training, it enthralls her equally to charge down
this path.
“My engineers are getting to do science,” she said. “And they smile, and I love it.”