Battery Manufacturing eBook v3

Tailoring – Slitting, Separating The tailoring of electrode foils traditionally relies on mechanical cutting processes such as punching and blade cutting, which exhibit notable drawbacks, such as tool wear, metal layer smearing, and limited contour adaptability. Changing the shape of the electrode requires redesigning of the cutting tools, which increases costs. In contrast, laser cutting has emerged as a proven, efficient, and reliable manufacturing method, already utilized across industries. The distinct advantages of laser cutting, including a non-contact process, and high processing speed outweigh those of mechanical cutting. The simplicity and cost-effectiveness of digitally controlled laser cutting enables cutting geometry changes underscores its superiority over mechanical processes. Tailoring of battery foil can be divided into different types of cutting processes; notching, slitting, and separating. The most important evaluation parameter is the quality of the cut, which ideally should be burr-free and without spatter and melt deposits. Laser cutting has shown outstanding performance in terms of cutting speed, short processing times and flexible adaptation to desired geometries in a non-contact process.