Energy

The access to clean, secure, affordable energy sources, and the building up of a strong industrial base around this, are part of the future of MBN’s advanced material.

Solving the energy challenge relies namely upon low carbon energy & energy efficiency technologies (windmills, grids, solar energy, rechargeable batteries for energy storage, …) whose economics and performance are strongly dependent on the development of innovative, well-performing and cost-competitive advanced materials.

MBN is working on several different aspects that contributes to the final goal of high performance energy production and storage.

Materials for Hydrogen Storage
Hydrogen storage is well known to be the major bottleneck for the use of H2 as energy carrier and, despite the huge scientific and industrial efforts in developing new practical solutions for the hydrogen storage tank, actually there are few storage systems available for nice markets. The request for energy storage systems is growing as fast as the energy availability from renewable sources. Consequently the market is demanding for more performing, safer and economic systems. MBN has developed nanostructured metal composite materials able to meet the energy storage main requests with good gravimetric and energetic density (typical >7 wt. %, ≥ 100 kg H2/m3) and low charging and discharging pressure


Materials for Electrochemical Storage
The batteries maker sector is constantly seeking new materials to increase performances of existing solutions, substituting critical raw materials like Cobalt in Lithium ion batteries or validating new technologies. MBN is working in close collaboration with different Universities and research groups to bring to the market new materials for Solid State Lithium ion Batteries, Redox Flow Batteries and Metal-Air batteries.


Materials for Magnets
The number one risk to the permanent magnet industry is their dependency from rare earth elements. MBN works with partners across Europe to find new compositions and new nanostructured materials that helps providing reliable alternatives to rare hearth based permanent magnets with high coercivity


Materials for Thermoelectric generators
Beside conventional technologies for energy production, other classes of materials can produce voltage difference as a response to thermal gradient (thermoelectric material) or mechanical stimulus (piezoelectric materials). MBN production technology adapts particularly well to these classes of materials. These materials require nanostructured matrixes and fine dispersion of elements to increase efficiency and to make them affordable alternatives for energy harvesting.