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Altair Nanotechnologies Announces US Patent Award

January 13, 2005 by Jeff Shepard

Altair Nanotechnologies Inc. (Reno, NV) announced that the US Patent Office has allowed Altair's patent application for a "Process for Making Nano-Sized and Sub-Micron-Sized Lithium-Transition Metal Oxides." The patent application describes the process and underlying technology for producing nano-sized and sub-micron sized oxides of lithium and a transition metal with particle size over a range of 10 nm to 1,000 nm and with narrow size dispersion.

The patent was derived from developing cathode materials for next-generation lithium-ion batteries, and is complementary to the patent announced by Altair on January 7, 2005, which related to materials for anodes. The processes protected by the new patent are used to make materials that have been formed into electrodes and have been successfully tested by several battery and battery technology companies. The patents are an important cornerstone in Altair's program to develop mated pairs of high-performance anode and cathode materials for advanced high-power, fast recharge, long cycle life in safe, high-capacity lithium-ion batteries.