Hyundai Motor Group opens research center to secure global battery leadership

From left, Hyundai Motor Group Chair Euisun Chung, Seoul National University President Ryu Hong-Lim, and Choi Jang-wook, a professor at Seoul National University’s Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, are listening to explanations about the joint battery research center from a student on July 25. [Courtesy of Hyundai Motor Group]

South Korea’s auto giant Hyundai Motor Group opened a joint battery research center at the Seoul National University on Tuesday, with an aim to advance battery technologies and foster industry-academia cooperation to establish global leadership in the battery field.

Hyundai Motor Group and Seoul National University held an opening ceremony for the “Joint Battery Research Center” at the university campus on Tuesday in the attendance of Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung and President of Seoul National University Ryu Hong-Lim.

“The reason for developing various mobility solutions equipped with high-performance batteries is our sense of responsibility to pass on a sustainable environment to the next generation,” Chung said during the opening ceremony. “I call on all those involved in the joint research center to take the lead in the electrified transformation of the mobility industry through innovative research and development.”

The president of Seoul National University also said that the joint research center will be the birthplace of battery technology with improved performance and higher safety, in line with Hyundai Motor Group’s proactive innovation in the field of electrification.

“The top-notch faculty members and graduate students will work in synergy with Hyundai Motor Group researchers to make breakthroughs in various innovations from battery basics to applications,” Ryu said.

The establishment of the joint research center began with the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between Hyundai Motor Group and Seoul National University in 2021. The two parties expanded Seoul National University’s Institute of Chemical Process New Technology and built a three-story, 901-square-meter facility with seven laboratories and meeting rooms for battery development, analysis, measurement, and processing. This is the first time Seoul National University has a facility dedicated to researching electric vehicle batteries.

Choi Jang-wook, a professor at Seoul National University’s Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and a distinguished scholar in the field of batteries, was appointed as the inaugural director of the center.

The center will focus on researching advanced technologies for next-generation batteries that can increase the range of electric vehicles and reduce charging time. Research will also be conducted on battery condition monitoring technology and advanced process technology. Specifically, the center will conduct 22 joint research projects centered on four main areas: lithium metal batteries, all-solid-state batteries, battery management systems, and battery process technologies. This will involve the participation of 21 professors and master’s and doctoral-level talents from domestic universities such as Seoul National University, the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology, Sungkyunkwan University, Hanyang University, and Chungnam National University.

Hyundai Motor Group will provide support to secure the capability to develop next-generation batteries. By 2030, it will invest more than 30 billion won ($ 23.53 million) in the construction of the research center and experimental equipment. In addition, Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp. researchers will be dispatched to the center to participate in joint research.