COnovate wins $1.25M DOE contract to scale domestic graphite-alternative battery anode

eCOphite is built on graphene monoxide (GmO), a 2D crystalline solid with a roughly 1:1 carbon-to-oxygen ratio, formed by thermally reducing graphene oxide. Rather than retaining graphene’s pure carbon hexagonal lattice, GmO’s atoms rearrange into a different, lower-symmetry crystal structure – making it a distinct material in the graphene family. The company positions eCOphite as an additive that can be used alongside existing anode materials rather than a wholesale graphite replacement, produced domestically from bio-renewable feedstocks without mining.

COnovate (formerly SafeLi), a Wisconsin-based battery materials company, has been awarded a $1.25 million, 24-month development contract by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Critical Minerals and Materials Accelerator Program to scale commercial-scale production of its eCOphite anode material. The award is administered under the DOE’s Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation, AMMTO Award Number DE-EE0011730.eCOphite is built on graphene monoxide (GmO), a 2D crystalline solid with a roughly 1:1 carbon-to-oxygen ratio, formed by thermally reducing graphene oxide. Rather than retaining graphene’s pure carbon hexagonal lattice, GmO’s atoms rearrange into a different, lower-symmetry crystal structure – making it a distinct material in the graphene family. The company positions eCOphite as an additive that can be used alongside existing anode materials rather than a wholesale graphite replacement, produced domestically from bio-renewable feedstocks without mining.

Read More Graphene-Info – Graphene industry portal