NETZSCH highlights battery manufacturing pumps at AABC 2026

NETZSCH Pumps USA will showcase its advanced complex fluid handling solutions for lithium battery manufacturing at the Advanced Automotive Battery Conference (AABC) 2026, held December 7-10 at the San Diego Convention Center. Exhibiting at Booth 300, the company will feature its NEMO progressing cavity pumps and PERIPRO peristaltic pumps, which are specifically designed to transfer abrasive, highly viscous, and shear-sensitive battery slurries with exact volumetric accuracy.

Pulsation-free precision for electrode coating
The NEMO progressing cavity pumps are engineered to meter harsh, abrasive fluids without pulsation, a critical requirement for maintaining a thin and uniform thickness during continuous electrode coating processes. To prevent metal contamination of the battery active materials, the pumps utilize non-metallic wearing wetted parts and lubrication-free flexible shafts. NETZSCH formulates over 30 different stator elastomers in-house, ensuring optimal chemical resistance against aggressive solvents, electrolytes, adhesives, and ceramic slurries. The pumps can operate at low speeds to supply steady, low-flow metering for precise raw material mixing.

Seal-less slurry handling with high efficiency
For highly demanding transfers, the PERIPRO peristaltic pumps offer a heavy-duty, seal-less architecture that completely contains hazardous vapors and chemical emissions. The pumped media only comes into contact with a precision-machined elastomer hose, enabling the transfer of corrosive slurries containing up to 70 percent solids without requiring exotic abrasion-resistant alloys. By utilizing large, maintenance-free rollers instead of a traditional sliding shoe design, the PERIPRO achieves up to 30 percent energy savings, requires 90 percent less lubricant, and delivers a volumetric flow accuracy of +/-1 percent for delicate, shear-sensitive products.

Additional Context: Shear sensitivity in battery electrode slurries
This section details technical specifications and fluid dynamics not included in the original product announcement.

Lithium-ion battery electrode manufacturing relies heavily on slurries containing active materials, conductive carbon additives, and polymeric binders (such as PVDF) dissolved in harsh solvents (like NMP). These slurries are highly non-Newtonian and shear-sensitive. If pumped too aggressively using high-speed centrifugal pumps, the mechanical stress can break the molecular chains of the binder (shear degradation) or cause the carbon particles to agglomerate, which ultimately degrades the electrical conductivity and structural integrity of the dried electrode coating. Positive displacement technologies, such as progressing cavity and peristaltic pumps, are essential in this environment. They rely on moving cavities to transport these dense, abrasive fluids gently at low rotational speeds. This maintains the homogenous dispersion of the slurry while ensuring the zero-pulsation delivery required for defect-free, micron-level coating onto the copper or aluminum current collector foils.

Edited by an industrial journalist, Lekshman Ramdas, with AI assistance.

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