Arkema Takes Battery Binders and PVDF to Detroit
Arkema is showcasing its portfolio of battery materials at The Battery Show North America 2026, held October 12–15 at Huntington Place in Detroit, Michigan.
The company's portfolio addresses two growing markets: batteries for electric vehicles (EVs) and battery energy storage systems (BESS). Its materials include specialty binders, fluoropolymers, separator coatings, thermal-management products, and solutions designed to support battery recycling.
The exhibition follows Arkema's completion of a 15% expansion of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) production capacity at its Calvert City, Kentucky, facility in June 2026. The investment strengthens its manufacturing capacity for battery, semiconductor, and other high-performance applications.
Why Battery Materials Matter
Battery performance depends on more than the active materials used to store energy. Specialized chemicals and polymers help bind electrode materials, coat separators, manage heat, and support the mechanical integrity of battery systems.
These materials can influence:
Energy density
Battery safety
Manufacturing efficiency
Cycle life
Thermal management
Production costs
Recycling and disassembly
As battery manufacturers scale production, consistent material quality and reliable supply become increasingly important.
EV Batteries: Supporting Higher Energy Density
Arkema is highlighting two key material technologies for electric-vehicle batteries.
Incellion® Acrylic Binders
These binders are designed for silicon-based anodes. Silicon can store more lithium than conventional graphite, but its volume changes during charging and discharging create material and mechanical challenges.
Specialized binders can help maintain electrode integrity and support the development of higher-energy-density battery cells.
Kynar® PVDF
Arkema's Kynar PVDF materials are used as cathode binders and separator coatings in lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries.
These applications support electrode structure and separator performance, helping manufacturers develop cells with higher active-material loading and improved energy density.
The final results depend on battery chemistry, formulation, cell design, and manufacturing conditions.
Energy Storage Systems: Balancing Cost and Reliability
Stationary energy storage systems have different priorities from EV batteries. They must balance cost, safety, service life, and scalability while delivering reliable performance over repeated charge-and-discharge cycles.
Arkema offers Kynar PVDF and Incellion binders for LFP battery systems, along with newer binder technologies for primer coatings and ceramic-based separator layers.
These materials can support manufacturers working to improve battery performance while controlling production costs.
As renewable electricity generation expands, energy storage is becoming increasingly important for balancing intermittent supply, managing peak demand, and improving grid flexibility.
PVDF Capacity Expansion Strengthens Supply
Arkema completed a 15% PVDF capacity expansion at its Calvert City, Kentucky, plant in June 2026.
The expansion was intended to support growing demand from battery manufacturers, semiconductor producers, and cable and infrastructure markets.
Additional regional capacity can help improve supply availability and support customer qualification and production scale-up. However, actual market effects will depend on utilization, product-grade availability, customer demand, and broader industry capacity.
For procurement teams, the investment is a relevant indicator of Arkema's commitment to high-performance materials and North American supply capabilities.
Beyond the Battery Cell
Arkema's portfolio also includes materials used outside the cell to support thermal management, structural protection, coatings, and assembly.
Examples include:
Rilsan® Polyamide 11
Rilsamid® Polyamide 12
Reafree® coating resins
Zenimid® polyimide
Sartomer® UV-curable materials
Bostik adhesives
These materials serve different functions across battery packs and associated components, including insulation, coatings, bonding, and thermal-management applications.
Their suitability depends on the specific design, temperature range, chemical environment, and performance requirements of the battery system.
Battery Circularity and Recycling
Arkema is also highlighting products that support battery recycling.
Its Albone® high-purity hydrogen peroxide is used in hydrometallurgical processes that recover metals such as lithium, cobalt, and nickel from end-of-life batteries.
The company also offers silicone-free Bostik thermal gap fillers designed to support cleaner battery-pack disassembly.
These applications illustrate how specialty chemicals can contribute not only to battery manufacturing but also to end-of-life material recovery.
As battery volumes increase, recycling processes will become an important part of resource management, although commercial recovery economics depend on collection rates, feedstock composition, processing costs, and recovered-material prices.
Market Implications
Arkema's exhibition and capacity expansion reflect several wider developments in battery materials.
1. Growing Demand for Specialized Materials
EV and stationary storage manufacturers require materials tailored to their chemistry, design, safety, and performance objectives.
2. Manufacturing Scale-Up
Capacity investments can help suppliers support customers as battery production expands.
3. Regional Supply Resilience
Manufacturing capacity in North America may help serve local customers and reduce reliance on long-distance supply routes for selected grades.
4. Battery Chemistry Diversification
Different chemistries and electrode designs create demand for a broader range of binders, coatings, and functional polymers.
5. Recycling Infrastructure
Specialty chemicals used in metal recovery and disassembly can support the development of battery circularity.
Competitive Intelligence
Companies monitoring battery materials should track several indicators.
Capacity: Additional PVDF investments, plant utilization, and product-grade availability.
Customer adoption: Qualification of new binders and coatings in commercial battery designs.
Technology development: Progress in silicon anodes, LFP systems, separator coatings, and next-generation batteries.
Energy storage demand: Growth in stationary storage deployments and associated manufacturing capacity.
Recycling economics: Advances in hydrometallurgical processing and recovery of critical battery metals.
Regional supply: Investments in North American and other regional production sites.
Procurement Considerations
Battery manufacturers and industrial buyers should evaluate specialty materials based on performance, qualification requirements, and supply reliability.
Recommended actions include:
Verify material specifications and grade suitability.
Assess compatibility with the target battery chemistry.
Review technical documentation and quality controls.
Monitor manufacturing capacity and lead times.
Evaluate regional sourcing options.
Confirm recycling-process compatibility where relevant.
Review supplier contingency plans and long-term availability.
Switching a qualified binder, fluoropolymer, or coating material may require testing and process validation. Buyers should therefore consider qualification timelines when assessing alternative suppliers.
Looking Ahead
Arkema's presence at The Battery Show 2026 highlights the growing role of specialty chemicals in EV and energy storage manufacturing.
Its portfolio spans electrode binders, PVDF coatings, pack-level materials, and recycling-related chemicals, while the Calvert City expansion adds capacity to support demand across several high-performance markets.
For procurement and technical teams, the key issue is how suppliers combine consistent material quality, regional availability, technical support, and manufacturing scale as battery production evolves.
Key Takeaways
Arkema is exhibiting its EV and energy storage materials at The Battery Show in Detroit, October 12–15, 2026.
The portfolio includes Incellion acrylic binders and Kynar PVDF for battery applications.
Arkema completed a 15% PVDF capacity expansion at its Calvert City, Kentucky, plant in June 2026.
The company also supplies materials for thermal management, coatings, adhesives, and battery recycling.
Battery manufacturers should evaluate materials based on technical performance, qualification requirements, and supply reliability.
Battery recycling creates additional demand for specialty chemicals used in metal recovery and disassembly.
Sources
e: https://chemxplore.com/news/arkema-ev-ess-battery-materials
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