Ohio State, Honda, Business, State, Federal Leaders Partner for Battery Cell Research Center

Ohio State University was joined by Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted, congressional leaders, Honda, Schaeffler Americas and JobsOhio officials Monday to announce the creation of a new battery cell research and development center.

Slated to open in April 2025, the lab aims to accelerate the domestic development of battery cell materials and manufacturing technologies while providing an experiential learning setting for advanced battery technology workforce development.

With $22 million in commitments to date, this project will include the renovation of a 25,000-square-foot facility in Ohio State's innovation district into a dedicated battery cell research, production and education support space. The center will be managed and operated at Ohio State by the Institute for Materials and Manufacturing Research (IMR).

Creating a Hub for Academic and Industry Connections

Honda will serve as lead foundational partner for the project and has committed $15 million for the research and development center. The project was also endorsed by the State of Ohio and JobsOhio.

The completed project will also create a hub for academic and industry connections across chemical and physical sciences, engineering, business and policy. Once completed, the project will create a strong pipeline of industry talent while also attracting electric vehicle battery manufacturing and supply chain businesses to help support the evolving vision for the industry.

Through the work of U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, U.S. Reps. Joyce Beatty, and Mike Carey, $4.5 million in federal funding was secured through the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) Extramural Construction program.

The federal funding will support: 

• A 4,000-square-foot dry room, which is necessary for the assembly of battery cells due to the extreme moisture sensitivity of cell components.

The dry room and new battery cell assembly equipment will facilitate the development and translation of batteries from the lab to practical scales, including the electric vehicle market.

"Ohio State's commitment to research, innovation and bringing solutions to the world is at the heart of our land-grant mission," said Peter Mohler, acting president and executive vice president for research, innovation and knowledge at Ohio State. "We have more reach and impact when we work with our partners at the local, state and federal levels and we join industry-leading partners like Honda and Schaeffler."