Benefiting from support from the "dual carbon" (carbon peaking and carbon neutrality) policies, significant improvements in technological capabilities, and enhanced industrial integration, China’s new energy battery industry has entered a phase of rapid development, with its total industrial output value exceeding 1.4 trillion yuan. As a key component in the new energy sector, lithium batteries face growing demands for higher energy storage capacity, longer usable time, and faster charging efficiency—driven by the upgrading of digital electronic products and the increasing need for longer driving ranges in pure electric new energy vehicles. However, among the materials that determine battery range, the R&D of cathode materials is approaching its performance limit. Thus, developing high-performance anode materials for next-generation battery technology has become an industry consensus. Soon, silicon-based materials—with the comprehensive advantages of "high capacity + high operating voltage + low cost"—caught the attention of industry players and are regarded as the next-generation anode materials with promising industrialization prospects.

Silicon-based materials include silicon-carbon and silicon-oxygen composites. Among them, nano-silicon-carbon anode materials, formed by combining nano-silicon and graphite, can significantly improve the energy density of batteries while offering high safety and abundant reserves. They are key to enhancing battery efficiency and ideal anode materials for solid-state batteries. Therefore, some industry insiders have stated, "The rise and fall of the lithium battery industry lies in the hands of silicon-based anode manufacturers."

Jiangsu Zaichi Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Zaichi Technology") is a startup focusing on the R&D and production of nano-silicon and silicon-based anode materials. It is one of the few high-tech enterprises in China capable of large-scale nano-silicon preparation and full-scale silicon-based anode material production. Its nano-silicon-carbon anode materials have achieved mass production of 3,000 tons per year, with distinct advantages such as low expansion rate, high capacity, high first-cycle efficiency, long lifespan, and excellent safety performance. Since the proposal of the "dual carbon" goals in 2020, the new energy sector has been thriving, drawing attention to upstream silicon-based anode materials. As a leader in both academic research and industry, Zaichi Technology has gradually emerged in the market.

Founded in 2017, Zaichi Technology is led by Dr. Wang Wei, an approachable academic-turned-entrepreneur. With over 20 years of research experience in special processing technology at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Dr. Wang has led or participated in more than 20 national-level projects, including the National 863 Program and National Natural Science Foundation projects, making him an expert in the field of nanomaterials. In 2016, the state issued the Opinions on Implementing Distribution Policies Oriented to Increasing Knowledge Value, encouraging university teachers to start businesses. Against this backdrop, Dr. Wang combined his solid academic expertise with forward-looking business acumen and embarked on an independent entrepreneurial journey, driven by the wave of new energy development.

In its early stages, with the introduction of industry resources, Zaichi Technology leveraged its outstanding nano-silicon preparation capabilities to become the exclusive supplier of nano-silicon raw materials for 贝特瑞 (Betty), a global leader in anode materials. After several years of development, the company gradually expanded its production capacity and, in response to market demand, began researching and developing silicon-carbon materials. However, when the company planned to further invest in industrial expansion, the COVID-19 pandemic brought unforeseen risks. The concentration of its business in a single track and over-reliance on a single product forced Dr. Wang to rethink the company’s future direction.

At that time, the surge in the new energy sector and rapid technological advancement led to increasing demands for battery performance—especially energy density and cycle life—driving researchers and industry players to explore new breakthroughs in cathode and anode materials. While cathode materials had already achieved significant optimization and were approaching their development limits, anode materials— which affect lithium battery energy density, cycle life, and rate performance—became the new focus of R&D.

Traditional anode materials mostly use graphite, whose theoretical capacity (372 mAh/g) cannot meet the demand for long battery life. To break this limitation and achieve longer ranges, the lithium battery industry turned to silicon-based anode materials, which have a theoretical specific capacity of 4,200 mAh/g. If silicon’s lithium storage capacity can be effectively utilized, the energy density of batteries will be significantly improved—even 20% to 40% higher than that of current mainstream batteries—making silicon-based materials highly cost-effective anode options. However, challenges such as volume expansion, low electrical conductivity, and compatibility with electrolytes must be addressed for the widespread application of silicon-based anodes.

With years of research experience in silicon-based anode materials, Dr. Wang recognized this as an opportunity to tap into a new incremental market. Since silicon-based anode materials began to be gradually applied in consumer and power battery fields in 2015, countries such as Japan, South Korea, and the United States have maintained a leading position in related technologies. Today, with the increasing maturity of the domestic silicon-based material industrial chain, abundant raw material supply, and solid academic research foundations, China has a solid basis for commercialization—presenting a "corner overtaking" opportunity. Even compatibility issues can be addressed through solutions such as using nanotechnology to reduce volume and developing silicon-carbon composites to improve conductivity and stability. "The industry is fraught with uncertainties, but enterprises with solid technical capabilities and comprehensive production capacities may be able to tackle crises and challenges at different levels," Dr. Wang noted. Driven by market trends and industrial demands, he decided to reposition Zaichi Technology from a supplier of silicon-carbon additives to an anode material enterprise, seeking more development opportunities.

The essence of the "dual carbon" market lies in manufacturing, which defines the specific development laws and return cycles of the silicon-carbon industry. This not only tests the patience and resilience of entrepreneurs but also made Dr. Wang realize that only by strengthening internal capabilities and fundamentals can the company face unknown challenges.

In 2019, Zaichi Technology invested significant efforts in R&D of silicon-carbon materials. Relying on its professional team and through arduous efforts by researchers, the company successfully developed nano-silicon-carbon anode materials with a reversible capacity of 400-500 mAh/g and a first-cycle efficiency of over 93%. It also quickly established a pilot production process for silicon-carbon anode materials, leading the industry with a cost-effective technical route.

In 2020, the "dual carbon" goals were officially established, marking the launch of a new energy revolution centered on renewable energy. While overcapacity in traditional graphite compressed the market space for silicon-carbon materials, new opportunities emerged. In 2021, driven by rising costs of upstream raw materials and a sluggish silicon-oxygen anode track, silicon-carbon anode materials gradually gained traction in the lithium battery industry and became a hot project attracting capital attention.

As a standard nano-silicon-carbon manufacturer, Zaichi Technology’s products offer higher specific capacity, better rate performance, and greater safety compared to graphite, drawing the attention of several leading capital firms. "As an entrepreneur with a technical background and over 20 years of experience in this field, I am well aware of the difficulties in integrating technology and the market. Scientific research requires ‘adding complexity,’ while product development requires ‘simplifying processes,’" Dr. Wang explained.

From raw material production to achieving mass production of finished products, the company not only needs to adapt to market demand—optimizing processes and ensuring precise control in terms of cost, supply consistency, quality control, and management—but also requires capital support to bring products to the market for validation. Domestic silicon-carbon anode material manufacturers are still in the critical R&D stage, facing challenges such as high difficulty in process innovation, early-stage industrialization, large-scale mass production, and cost control. "Therefore, we hope to partner with capital that, on the one hand, recognizes the value of our high-tech R&D-driven company in promoting industry development, and on the other hand, can provide support for our future development—whether through brand endorsement or resource empowerment," Dr. Wang stated, emphasizing his clear goals for capital selection despite the hot market track.

In 2021, Zaichi Technology joined hands with Nanjing Innovation Investment Group. The injection of funds from Nanjing’s industrial fund provided strong support for the company’s R&D and market expansion, enabling Zaichi Technology to boldly launch its R&D products into the market. It then collected customer feedback step by step, addressed market pain points, and steadily moved toward the goal of improving products and achieving mass production capabilities.

To produce high-performance, low-cost nano-silicon materials, Zaichi Technology adopted a technical route different from traditional wet grinding and silane cracking methods. Instead, it used a safer, low-carbon, and scalable production method. After three rounds of iteration, its silicon-carbon anode materials have gained market recognition for their high first-cycle efficiency and long cycle performance. Currently, in cylindrical batteries, the materials are paired with ternary, lithium manganate, and lithium manganese iron phosphate cathodes; in pouch batteries, they are paired with lithium cobalt oxide cathodes. These applications have expanded into the 3C, digital, and small-power consumer battery fields, with the company’s market penetration rate firmly ranking among the industry’s top tier.

Through a steady and down-to-earth approach—from R&D to production, and from factories to the market—Zaichi Technology has effectively connected scientific research and manufacturing, taking solid steps toward integrating R&D and production. Currently, the company holds over 70 patents, with production bases in Yangzhou and Changzhou, and a R&D center in the UK. It has established cylindrical and pouch battery testing and evaluation lines, a standardized workshop covering 8,000 square meters, and an annual production capacity of 3,000 tons of nano-silicon-carbon anode materials (with annual increases planned). Its nano-silicon-carbon anode materials boast distinct advantages such as low expansion rate, high capacity, high first-cycle efficiency, long lifespan, and excellent safety. Zaichi Technology is the only company in China capable of quantitative production of nano-silicon-carbon anode materials and has established cooperation with leading domestic and foreign anode material enterprises (including Betty). Its products serve top domestic and foreign battery manufacturers.

As the silicon-based anode material most likely to achieve commercialization, the industry predicts that its global market demand will reach over 40,000 tons by 2025. This huge demand brings both development potential and risks. Technically, the 300% volume expansion rate and limited 300-500 cycle life of silicon-based anode materials have long been key technical bottlenecks. Commercially, the silicon-carbon anode material market requires producers to have strategic vision and a strong focus on product-market fit. As investment enthusiasm gradually fades, the "dual carbon" track has entered the second half of "de-bubbling," where an enterprise’s technical capabilities and market patience have become critical competitive advantages.

With the market cooling down, the industry will focus more on the actual effectiveness of products. This requires enterprises to maintain steady strategic resolve and improve their product application capabilities. Dr. Wang stated that Zaichi Technology will further enhance its production standards and take solid steps to enter the anode material industry. The company will address the expansion issue not only from the perspective of silicon but also through synergistic efforts involving silicon-based composites and even anode materials as a whole. It will continue to increase R&D investment, further expand nano-silicon-carbon production capacity, strive to expand market scale, face the impact of industry trends with a steady attitude, explore the silicon-carbon anode material market with firm conviction, and work pragmatically to achieve perfect product-market alignment.

A relevant person in charge of the Investment Department II of Nanjing Innovation Investment Group commented, "Zaichi Technology is an enterprise with strong technical strengths. Its team combines academic experience with industrialization insights. Since its establishment, it has focused on R&D of silicon-based anode materials and, amid the ever-changing market, has remained committed to researching and seeking breakthroughs in the production and preparation of new nano-silicon-carbon materials. It has already achieved mass production capabilities and leads the domestic market—an impressive achievement. As an investor, Nanjing Innovation Investment Group will continue to pay close attention to Zaichi Technology’s development and industry trends, providing further support for the company’s growth."

Facing the drastic changes in the industry landscape, Zaichi Technology will continue to leverage its profound technical "strengths" to develop new productive forces, give full play to its advantages in nano-silicon-carbon production processes, and forge ahead in the development of the anode material industry.