Sumitomo Chemical Co. (Tokyo; www.sumitomo-chem.co.jp) has announced plans to more than double its production capacity for lithium-ion secondary battery separators, which are marketed under the Pervio brand name. The production at its Ohe Works in Niihama, Ehime Pref., Japan will be raised to approximately 1.3 times the current capacity by next spring. In addition, a new plant for Pervio will be built at its subsidiary in South Korea, scheduled to start commercial-scale production in 2017.
There is a growing demand for lithium-ion secondary batteries that offer higher capacity and secured safety for applications in electric vehicles and smartphones. Pervio can enhance safety of batteries because of its physical structure, which includes an aramid as a heat-resistant layer formed on a polyolefin substrate. Pervio is chiefly mounted on cars through its use in Panasonic’s cylindrical lithium-ion secondary batteries. In recent years, demand for lithium-ion secondary batteries for car-mounting use has been expanding, reflecting automakers’ active drive to launch various electric vehicles.