Platinum-group metals miners Platinum Group Metals and Anglo American Platinum subsidiary Lion Battery Technologies has been issued a US patent for its next-generation battery technology using platinum and palladium.

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Patent No. 10,734,636 B2  entitled “Battery Cathodes for Improved Stability” was issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to Florida International University (FIU). Under a sponsored agreement, Lion Battery Technologies has exclusive rights to all technology being developed by FIU included patents granted.

The patent includes the use of platinum group metals and carbon nanotubes and other innovations in a lithium battery.

Under the sponsored agreement, research and patent applications are being funded to unlock the potential of Lithium Air and Lithium Sulfur battery chemistries by using the catalytic properties of platinum and palladium. Research is led by Dr. Bilal El-Zahab who completed post doctoral work at Massachusetts Institute of Technology along with a team that includes six specialist nano-materials and battery post doctoral fellows. The team at FIU has completed the first year of research and surpassed their first technical milestone. Further patent applications have been filed.

“The initial patent grant is the first significant milestone towards our objectives to both capitalize on a true cutting-edge innovation and drive demand for PGMs at the same time,” says Platinum Group Metals CEO Michael Jones.

Lion Battery Technologies was jointly formed in 2019 to accelerate the development of next-generation battery technology using platinum and palladium. The partners believe that the possibility of creating additional demand for platinum and palladium in the battery technology space is an exciting development and of strategic importance to both parties.