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From lab to line: Accelerate your battery R&D with scalable slot-die coating technology
Discover how cutting-edge slot-die coating technology can streamline your battery research and development, reduce costs, and improve performance. Learn how to bridge the gap from laboratory experimentation to industrial-scale production with precision and efficiency.
Scalable quality slot-die coating of battery electrodes
Battery research is a complex, multi-step process that requires meticulous attention to detail at every stage. Each step builds on the previous one, making it essential to ensure the highest quality at every phase. Among these steps, coating the electrodes stands out as the most critical. If the coating quality fails, all subsequent steps are compromised, leading to unreliable results and wasted resources.
Importance of quality and scalable coatings
Electrode coating and the subsequent drying are the most critical and costly steps in battery manufacturing. If the coating quality fails, all subsequent steps are compromised, leading to unreliable results and wasted resources. With bad and irreproducible coating steps, improvements in active material and slurry formulation can be masked in poor electrochemical performance. Progressive testing by adapting the slurry recipe, coating parameters, and drying procedure leads to a result that is easier to scale to production.
With FOM R2R machinery, you have a tool to test the coating and drying procedure in a process analogous to a production line. A user-friendly software interface allows you to control coating parameters and different drying procedures, such as IR power, oven temperature, air circulation, and more, enabling you to achieve consistent, high-quality coatings across the entire substrate.
Challenges in coating electrodes
Coating battery electrodes comes with its own set of challenges, particularly when dealing with thick, high-viscous slurries or avoiding issues like edge elevation. These difficulties can lead to inefficiencies, such as uneven coatings and material waste, which directly impact battery performance.
Coating homogeneity
• Have full control over all coating parameters.
• Slot-die head leveling is easy to adjust and readjust.
• Control coating speed: monitor and change coating speed seamlessly.
• Pump rate: precise flow rate control to achieve the desired electrode loading.
Coating homogeneity
- Have full control over all coating parameters.
- Slot-die head leveling is easy to adjust and readjust.
- Control coating speed: monitor and change coating speed seamlessly.
- Pump rate: precise flow rate control to achieve the desired electrode loading.
Drying
• Multiple drying zones to enable multifaceted drying options.
• Possibility to use varying temperatures, air circulation, and air exhaust for control of solvent partial pressure inside the oven.
• Optional IR and laser drying.
• Critical to prevent binder migration and obtain the desired electrode microstructure.
• User-centric GUI that allows multiple users to obtain repeatable results, removing a human factor.
Drying
- Multiple drying zones to enable multifaceted drying options.
- Possibility to use varying temperatures, air circulation, and air exhaust for control of solvent partial pressure inside the oven.
- Optional IR and laser drying.
- Critical to prevent binder migration and obtain the desired electrode microstructure.
- User-centric GUI that allows multiple users to obtain repeatable results, removing a human factor.
How slot-die technology can accelerate battery R&D
Slot-die coating is a state-of-the-art solution for precise thin film deposition in the battery industry. It is crucial for enhancing material layers’ thickness and uniformity. It provides scalable control from lab to pilot scale, dramatically transforming the speed and consistency of battery development.
The slot-die coating technique is also commonly used in industrial battery manufacturing. Adopting slot-die technology early in R&D helps de-risk the process and speed up time to market.
Prioritize a supplier that guarantees seamless transitions—same slot-die heads, software, operating protocols, and calibration standards across different stages—for smoother scaling.
Here’s how you’ll stay a step ahead:
- Mimics full-scale production: Utilizing slot-die technology on a smaller scale allows for replicating production processes. This will save you significant time when transitioning to larger machines and industrial production.
- Production-level quality on a smaller scale: Slot-die coating on a lab-scale machine achieves consistent, high-quality output with a smaller footprint. Thus, you can identify and resolve potential issues before scaling up.
- Leverages early experiences: By starting with smaller machines, researchers build valuable expertise and troubleshooting skills, which they can apply as they scale up to pilot production.
Slot-die coating process for batteries
What layers to coat with slot-die
Device architectures vary by specific energy storage technology, but slot-die coating is a core method for producing next-generation electrodes that require precise mass loading and absolute control over film uniformity. In the diagrams below, the text in white—such as cathode and anode coatings, primers, and solid electrolytes—represents slot-die coatable layers; others typically represent current collectors like aluminum or copper foils and separator base films. Target thicknesses and mass loadings are finely controlled by adjusting ink rheology, pump speed, and drying profiles to minimize internal resistance and maximize energy density.
Lithium-ion batteries
- Al foil (positive current collector)
- Primer/adhesion (cathode side)
- Cathode coating
(e.g., NMC or LFP + binder + carbon) - Separator base film
(PE/PP, microporous) - Anode coating
(graphite or graphite/silicon + binder + carbon) - Primer/adhesion (anode side)
- Cu foil (negative current collector)
Solid-state batteries
- Al foil (positive current collector)
- Cathode composite
(active + solid electrolyte + binder) - Solid electrolyte separator
- Anode interlayer
- Al/Cu foil (negative current collector)
- Encapsulation / barrier
Supercapacitors
- Al foil (positive current collector)
- Primer / adhesion
- Electrode coating — activated carbon
- Separator base film (microporous polymer)
- Electrode coating — activated carbon
- Primer / adhesion
- Al foil (negative current collector)
Coating examples
Anode (wet)
Anode (dry)
Cathode (wet)
Cathode (dry)
Advanced coating equipment for battery electrode R&D
Slot-die coating technology advances battery R&D by enabling highly precise, uniform coatings that optimize performance, minimize material waste, and lower production costs. You gain scalability from lab to production, maintaining quality consistency across stages and accelerating development timelines.
At FOM, we extend these benefits through an integrated approach that combines cutting-edge systems, refined processes, and deep technical insight, delivering unmatched value beyond standard solutions.
Precision-engineered hardware excellence
With over a decade exclusively dedicated to slot-die coating, we at FOM deliver hardware precision that defines industry standards. Slot-die heads are built from the highest-quality 316L stainless steel for outstanding corrosion resistance, mechanical durability, and thermal stability under demanding conditions. We use high-quality servo motors to ensure vibration-free movement of the chuck and high-precision pumps for optimal control of wet layer thickness.
The most cost-effective way to start scaling your research
FOM Technologies’ product selection caters to R&D researchers, from lab-scale research to pilot-scale production. Select a smaller entry-level tabletop machine, such as the FOM nanoRC, or a more advanced FOM alphaSC, and you have a perfect platform for nailing the slurry recipe before scaling. These machines are ideal for testing small quantities of electrode materials. With added drying functions, these machines scale well from small electrodes intended for coin cell testing to manufacturing small batches of double-sided coatings for small pouch cells.
Case spotlight: Washington Clean Energy Testbeds (WCET)
Scaling clean energy innovation with precision coating
At the Washington Clean Energy Testbeds (WCET), FOM Technologies’ slot-die coating equipment is accelerating the transition from lab-scale innovation to commercial battery applications.
Initially brought in to support solar cell research, FOM’s modular and precise coating systems quickly proved their versatility in battery R&D. Dr. Devin MacKenzie, Technical Director at WCET, highlights the crucial advantage: “Our FOM flatbed tools have coated more square meters than almost any R&D tool in the world. Their precision and durability allowed us to evolve from optical coatings to thick battery electrodes without missing a beat.”
The lab’s advanced battery initiative now relies on FOM’s alphaSC, moduloR2R and compact moduloR2R systems to develop next-gen battery materials, including solid-state electrolytes, high-viscosity pastes, and multi-layered coatings. With consistent coating quality and low material waste, researchers can rapidly test and validate new formulations—whether for small-scale wearables or EV-format pouch cells.
Machine learning integration adds another layer of value. One WCET researcher developed custom 3-axis air knife systems and in-situ sensors on FOM tools to optimize drying conditions and rapidly iterate new recipes. “There are thousands of possible parameter combinations in battery coating,” the researcher explains. “By combining sensors and AI with FOM’s reliable hardware, we’re dramatically shortening the path from idea to data.”
Why FOM? Slot-die coating offers repeatability across different machines and formats. As another researcher at WCET puts it, “FOM’s interchangeable slot-die heads and intuitive software allow us to scale from early experiments to pilot-scale runs without reengineering the process”.
With FOM’s tools at the center of this transformation, WCET is building a bridge between curiosity-driven research and scalable battery production—empowering the next generation of energy storage technologies.
“Using a high-quality slot-die coating tool yields very consistent results. When some of our customers, who might have access to lower-quality tools, seek more consistent outcomes, they often turn to us.”
Phillip Cox, PhD, Program Manager and Senior Staff Scientist at WCET
Download our free application insights to discover how precision coating accelerates breakthrough science
From lithium-ion to solid-state and beyond, next-generation energy storage demands high-performance electrode layers that are uniform, scalable, and reproducible. This application insight explores how FOM Technologies’ slot-die coating solutions are empowering researchers to optimize battery materials, reduce waste, and accelerate scale-up from lab to pilot production.
Discover how our tools help drive real-world battery innovation—improving safety, boosting performance, and enabling smarter, cleaner energy systems.
Advanced coating software
FOM’s software leads the field as it evolves through user insights and the technical expertise of our science department. Using an intuitive GUI, it allows for highly detailed slurry coating protocol control and supports a broad range of customized settings (motion, heating, or pump control) while enabling remote operation and access. All parameters are shareable between FOM machines.
Access to industry-leading expertise
Partnering with us means you get to work with the industry’s largest in-house team of PhD-level material scientists, who share technical expertise and practical insights grounded in real-world coating applications.
We also collaborate with leading institutions to provide access to world-class training and test facilities for customer-specific workshops. These sessions give new users a hands-on introduction to the full scope of precise, scalable thin-film depositions for battery electrodes, fuel-cell membranes, perovskite solar cells, and many other applications.
Everything you need from lab to pilot scale
At FOM, we provide the means for our clients to coat remarkable electrodes quickly. We have created a cutting-edge coating method for use in, for example, the research and development of energy storage devices. Our product line is widely regarded as the industry standard bearer in battery research worldwide. The cutting-edge slot-die coating devices developed at FOM Technologies are used in battery research to coat uniform electrode layers with microliter control of slurry dosage, wet film thickness, and coating speed.
Roll-based
Sheet-based
Roll-to-roll
Technical support & application expertise
FOM Technologies is partnering with leading institutions worldwide to provide access to unrivaled training facilities and instruction. Our training sessions provide new users with the opportunity to jump-start their knowledge with a hands-on introduction to all aspects of precise, continuous, and scalable thin-film production via slot-die coating.
During these extensive training sessions, experienced users will also be able to sharpen their skills, fill knowledge gaps, and discuss their most pressing challenges with world-leading instructors and application experts.
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From lab to line:
Accelerate your battery R&D with scalable slot-die coating technology
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Revolutionize your battery innovation process
Discover how cutting-edge slot-die coating technology can streamline your battery research and development, reduce costs, and improve performance. Learn how to bridge the gap from laboratory experimentation to industrial-scale production with precision and efficiency.
Join industry leaders who are using slot-die technology to stay ahead of the curve in battery development.