“Autonomous control of gap distance and angel of attack in slot-die coating”

Despite the rapid scale-up of battery production which could be observed the last years, various challenges remain in electrode production. In particular, the high scrap rates of up to 40 % during the coating process of the electrodes offer enormous potential in terms of economic and ecological aspects. To counter these problems, a system concept was developed that can react autonomously to process conditions and thus reduce scrap. For this purpose, with the gap distance and the angle of attack deliberately two parameters are varied during slot-die coating, which react quickly and furthermore do not affect the productivity of the system. By adapting the position of the slot-die, it is possible to achieve an optimum operating point in the coating window and thus improve the quality of the results without regulating the volume flow or the web speed. The aim is both to shorten the start-up process by a fast and precise correction of the slot-die position on the basis of the coating result and to increase the quality in the adjusted operation. With the help of the corresponding measuring technology and the control based on the coating result, the processing of slurries with fluctuating fluid properties or the processing of new recipes is simplified and possible without manual intervention. The concept is possible for existing plants as well as for new plants.