In this article, the review on different modeling approaches used for the dispersion of conductive slurries is presented. It comprises three parts: state‐of‐the‐art dispersion process, physiochemical properties, and different modelling approaches. The first part explains the physical mechanism involved in the mixing process and gives an in‐depth understanding of the applicability of the current techniques available commercially with respect to lab‐scale, pilot plant, and industrially upscaled production of these conductive slurries. The main challenges in slurry formulation prevent the formation of agglomerates and breaking down the preexisting agglomerates. It can be understood by studying the role of process parameters such as mixing time and stirring speed involved in the dispersion process. The second part focusses on the important physiochemical properties such as solid content, particle size distribution, and rheology that influences the electrode performance. The third part focusses on the available modelling approaches based on computational‐fluid‐dynamics‐ and coarse‐grained‐molecular‐dynamics‐based on the need as well as the complexity involved. The important aspects such as accuracy, computational cost, advantages, and limitations for both these approaches are discussed that will help the readers to select an appropriate technique in the modelling paradigm to reduce the energy consumption in the dispersion process.

The ever-growing environmental and sustainability awareness as well as the associated increased independence from petroleum has led to bio-based materials increasingly replacing synthetic, non-renewable materials in various applications, including food packaging, coatings, adhesives, and energy storage devices. Although bio-based materials offer advantages such as reduced toxicity and harmfulness for humans and the environment, as well as contributing to the conservation of important resources, these aspects are usually not sufficient for commercialization. Integrating bio-based materials into existing technologies is challenging due to inherent disadvantages, such as difficult processability and low moisture resistance, making it difficult to readily substitute them for synthetic materials. Consequently, surface modifications are often necessary to make bio-based materials suitable for the intended applications. This review highlights the critical role of processing methods in the successful substitution of synthetic materials with bio-based alternatives. While previous studies have primarily concentrated on material combinations and formulations of bio-based applications, often considering processing methods as secondary, this review explores the influence and importance of dispersion quality. It examines how varying dispersing methods and process parameters can impact the performance of bio-based materials, alongside addressing the specific requirements for both the materials and the dispersing processes. Furthermore, it focuses on bio-based dispersions based on lignin and polysaccharides, particularly in applications such as bio-based adhesives and binders for battery technologies. By addressing these aspects, this review aims to reveal existing research gaps and provide insights into optimizing the processing of bio-based materials for diverse applications.

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are vital for modern energy storage applications. Lithium iron phosphate (LFP) is a promising cathode material due to its safety, low cost, and environmental friendliness compared to the widely used nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC), which contains hazardous nickel and cobalt compounds. However, challenges remain in enhancing the performance of LFP cathodes due to their low electronic and ionic conductivity. To improve both the safety and sustainability of the battery, this work presents a water-based LFP cathode utilizing the bio-based binder carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), eliminating the need for polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and the toxic solvent N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP). This study investigates the impact of different dispersing methods—dissolver mixing and wet jet milling—on slurry properties, electrode morphology, and battery performance. Slurries were characterized by rheology, particle size distribution, and sedimentation behavior, while coated and calendered electrodes were examined via thickness measurements and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Electrochemical performance of the electrodes was evaluated by means of C-Rate testing. The results reveal that dispersing methods significantly influence slurry characteristics but marginally affect electrochemical performance. Compared to dissolver mixing, wet jet milling reduced the median particle size by 39% (ΔD50 = 3.1 µm) and lowered viscosity by 96% at 1 s⁻¹, 80% at 105 s⁻¹, and 64% at 1000 s⁻¹. In contrast, the electrochemical performance of the resulting electrodes differed only slightly, with discharge capacity varying by approximately 12.8% at 1.0 C (Δcapacity = 10.7 mAh g⁻¹). This research highlights the importance of optimizing not only material selection but also processing techniques to advance safer and more sustainable energy storage solutions.

Nowadays, rotor-stator mixers are widely used in the chemical process industry to carry out the dispersion and de-agglomeration processes for manufacturing the homogenous electrode slurries. Development of the process simulation models for the turbulent mixing of these slurries helps to optimize the mixing parameters such as rotational speed and dispersion time. In this work, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) approach through ANSYS Fluent are explored to determine and analyze the flow patterns, velocity fields and viscosity distribution during the dispersion of anode slurries. It utilizes a non-homogeneous Eulerian multiphase approach and the typical k-ε model to create turbulence fields and compute the mixing rate. This work significantly improves our understanding of the relationship between rotor speed, dispersion time, viscosity distribution, and mixer geometry in rotor-stator mixers.