Hitachi High-Tech Corporation is using physical AI and process informatics to tackle one of the toughest manufacturing challenges facing all-solid-state batteries: finding the right coating conditions for cathode active materials.

 

The company said it has completed a demonstration with Powrex Corporation to identify optimal coating conditions designed to prevent battery output degradation and deterioration. The two companies will now accelerate efforts to commercialize the technology.

 

The push targets a critical bottleneck in all-solid-state battery production. Coating the surface of cathode active materials with a lithium-conductive oxide film can help prevent the formation of a resistive layer between the cathode and solid electrolyte—an issue that can reduce battery performance over repeated charge and discharge cycles.

 

But achieving the right coating uniformity, coverage and thickness is complex. Engineers have traditionally relied heavily on specialized expertise, experience and repeated trial-and-error experiments, making process development time-consuming and difficult to scale.

 

Hitachi High-Tech and Powrex are aiming to replace much of that trial and error with a data-driven approach.

 

The demonstration combined Powrex's coating technology and equipment data with Hitachi High-Tech's analytical technologies, AI and informatics capabilities. The companies used X-ray fluorescence analyzers (XRF) and scanning electron microscopes (SEM) to evaluate coated cathode materials and develop a quantitative method for measuring coating thickness, uniformity and interfacial characteristics.

 

The approach also helped establish relationships between processing conditions, material properties and battery performance.

 

The companies then integrated coating-equipment operating data, historical coating-performance data and measurement results into a single dataset. Hitachi High-Tech applied its PROACCELA process informatics technology to identify coating conditions capable of delivering high-quality and highly reproducible results.

 

The demonstration confirmed that the approach could determine optimal coating conditions while reducing development time and the time needed to move toward mass production.

 

Hitachi High-Tech and Powrex plan to commercialize an optimal coating-process proposal through Hitachi High-Tech's HMAX Industry lineup, targeting the expected expansion of the all-solid-state battery market around 2030.

 

The companies also plan to broaden the technology beyond battery materials to other coating applications and materials, with potential expansion into high-performance materials, pharmaceuticals and chemicals.

 

All-solid-state batteries are attracting major interest as a potential successor to conventional lithium-ion batteries. Their non-combustible solid electrolytes can improve safety, while their potential for higher energy density and longer service life could enable longer-range electric vehicles, fewer charging cycles and smaller, lighter battery packs.

 

The manufacturing challenge, however, remains substantial. Designing coating processes for particulate cathode materials requires careful control of material composition, particle characteristics, solid-electrolyte compatibility and equipment conditions.

 

Hitachi High-Tech said its physical AI approach is intended to bring that process development closer to a "Lab to Fab" model—linking research and development with mass production to shorten the path from technology development to commercial manufacturing.

 

The company, part of Hitachi's Connected Industries sector, is positioning HMAX Industry as a next-generation industrial solutions platform combining domain expertise, AI and data from digitalized assets.

 

With the Powrex demonstration, Hitachi High-Tech is betting that physical AI can turn a highly specialized, experience-driven battery manufacturing process into a faster, more measurable and scalable operation.