Lithium-Ion Battery Binder Patent Landscape 2026
Lithium-Ion Battery Binder Patent Landscape in 2026
The lithium-ion battery binder space is concentrated, with GRST-affiliated entities holding a commanding share of 117 patent families in scope; activity peaked in 2020 and has since eased, placing the field in a post-peak phase. China anchors filing activity as the lead jurisdiction, while several polymer-chemistry branches remain comparatively sparse and adjacent to the dominant electrode-application core.
GRST entities lead a concentrated field with a clear tier gap
GRST Singapore Pte Ltd ranks first with 28 patent families, followed by GRST International Ltd with 10 — together accounting for a dominant bloc at the top of the ranking. Blue Ocean & Black Stone Tech Co Ltd (Fujian) and Tosoh Corp each hold 8 patent families, and Guangdong Haozhi Tech Co Ltd holds 7, rounding out the top five.
The top five filers collectively represent 46% of the combined total across the hundred largest filers, a concentration level that signals clear incumbency. A notable tier gap separates the top two GRST entities from the rest of the field, where no single challenger approaches their scale.
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GRST Singapore Pte Ltd | 28 | |
| 2 | GRST International Ltd | 10 | |
| 3 | BLUE OCEAN & BLACK STONE TECH CO LTD (FUJIAN) | 8 | |
| 4 | Tosoh Corp | 8 | |
| 5 | Guangdong Haozhi Tech Co Ltd | 7 | |
| 6 | Arakawa Chemical Industries Ltd | 6 | |
| 7 | Borregaard | 3 | |
| 8 | AESC Japan Ltd | 3 | |
| 9 | Yanyi New Energy Tech Co Ltd | 2 | |
| 10 | Shenzhen Haodyne Tech Co Ltd | 2 |
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Changzhou Dubo Polymer Co Ltd | 2 | |
| 12 | Shenzhen Yanyi New Materials Co Ltd | 2 | |
| 13 | CHONGQING ACADEMY OF SCI & TECH | 2 | |
| 14 | Hefei Guoxuan High-Tech Power Energy Co Ltd | 2 | |
| 15 | BYD Co Ltd | 1 | |
| 16 | Yangzhou Nanopore Innovative Materials Tech Ltd | 1 | |
| 17 | Envision Ruitai Dynamics Tech (Shanghai) Co Ltd | 1 | |
| 18 | Chuzhou University | 1 | |
| 19 | Shenzhen Tianningda Adhesive Technology Co Ltd | 1 | |
| 20 | Envision Dynamics Tech (Jiangsu) Co Ltd | 1 |
GRST’s position implies deep prior-art coverage of aqueous binder formulations and electrode integration, raising freedom-to-operate considerations for new entrants pursuing similar chemistries. Challengers Tosoh Corp and Arakawa Chemical Industries have each recently entered the ranking as new entrants, suggesting the competitive boundary is still shifting at the second tier.
Filings from the most recent 18–24 months are subject to publication lag and will be under-counted until applications publish; the figures for 2024–2026 should be treated as provisional. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Activity peaked in 2020; electrode chemistry dominates the technology mix
The annual filing trend and technology composition charts together reveal a field that surged through 2020 and has since moderated, while remaining anchored in battery-electrode IPC classes with a secondary but smaller polymer-chemistry footprint.
Annual filing trend
Filings rose sharply to a peak of 35 families in 2020, then stepped down through 2021–2022, with a partial recovery in 2023 before easing again in 2024 and 2025. The 2024–2026 bars reflect publication lag and are under-counted; no conclusion about a continued decline should be drawn from those years alone.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
H01M (batteries, cells and fuel cells) is overwhelmingly dominant in the IPC mix, reflecting the applied-electrode focus of most filers. C08F (addition polymers including vinyl types) is the largest adjacent class, followed by C09J (adhesives) and smaller clusters in C08G (condensation polymers) and C08B (polysaccharides and derivatives) — branches that remain relatively thin relative to the core.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaHighly cited patent families surfaced by the query
Citation-heavy patent families returned by the query. Use this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents.
一种锂离子电池粘结剂的制备方法及应用
一种锂离子电池粘结剂的制备方法及应用，涉及锂离子电池材料技术领域。方法包括如下步骤：(1)将1,3,5-三氨基苯与聚丙烯酸溶于去离子水中，室温搅拌均匀，得到混合液；(2)将上述混合液在室温下静置，以完成交联反应，得到水凝胶；(3)将步骤(2)得到的水凝胶进行真空过滤，然后在真空条件下干燥，得到锂离子电池粘结剂。粘结剂应用于硅基的锂离子电池负极材料时，用量很少就能达到很好的粘合效果，显著改善材料的成膜性，并且具有原材料廉价易得，制备方法简单，对环境友好无污染等优点。釆用粘合剂制备而成的锂离子二次电池具有活性材料容量发挥高，电池的循环使用寿命长等特点。 (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aqueous binder for lithium ion battery, preparatio… | 32 |
| 2 | 改性的海洋多糖高分子锂离子电池粘结剂及其制备方法和应用 | 22 |
| 3 | 一种锂离子电池粘结剂以及一种锂离子电池 | 17 |
| 4 | 一种正极非氟锂电粘结剂及其制备方法和应用 | 12 |
| 5 | Binder composition for secondary battery | 11 |
| 6 | Dispersant and binder for lithium ion batteries ba… | 11 |
| 7 | 电极粘结剂、正极材料以及锂离子电池 | 11 |
| 8 | 聚丙烯酸锂及其制备方法、用途和锂离子电池 | 10 |
Ranked by total forward citations. Citation counts favour older and broadly cited patent families, and broad or adjacent patents may appear when they match the search scope. Treat this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents. Some patent titles may be shown in their original, non-English language where an accurate translation could not be guaranteed.
What the competitive structure means for R&D strategy
The combination of concentrated incumbency, a post-peak filing cycle, and sparse polymer-chemistry branches shapes where incremental and differentiated R&D can realistically add value.
Post-peak field with easing annual volume
The lifecycle stage is classified as Decline, with annual filings easing back from the 2020 peak. The multi-year corpus of 117 patent families reflects a field that had significant activity but where the pace of new protection has moderated. Entrants should expect a substantial prior-art landscape to navigate, particularly around core aqueous binder formulations.
Lifecycle: Post-peakTwo-tier structure with a wide gap at the top
GRST Singapore and GRST International together anchor the field well ahead of any single challenger. The top five filers account for 46% of the hundred largest filers’ combined total, signalling high incumbency. Second-tier players such as Tosoh Corp and Arakawa Chemical Industries are recent entrants building positions, but the gap to the leader is substantial.
Concentration: HighCo-filing concentrated within the GRST and Envision ecosystems
The most active co-filing pairs are GRST International Ltd with GRST Singapore Pte Ltd (5 joint families) and Envision Ruitai Dynamics Tech (Shanghai) with Envision Dynamics Tech (Jiangsu) (5 joint families). A smaller co-filing link exists between GRST International and Guangdong Haozhi Tech Co Ltd. Collaboration outside these two corporate families is not evidenced in the data.
Collaboration: Intra-groupChina is the primary filing destination; EPO and US are secondary
China leads as the filing jurisdiction with 43 patent records, followed by Europe (EPO) with 19 and the United States with 17. WIPO PCT filings number 13, indicating some applicants are pursuing international protection. Singapore, Australia, Japan, and Malaysia each have single-digit presences, reflecting the regional origins of the leading filers.
Lead office: ChinaGo beyond the landscape: Eureka’s TRIZ Solution agent breaks down an R&D problem and returns patented concept solutions, each with a technical approach and cited patent & literature evidence.
| Applicant | Collaborator | Co-filings |
|---|---|---|
| GRST International Ltd | GRST Singapore Pte Ltd | 5 |
| Envision Ruitai Dynamics Tech (Shanghai) Co Ltd | Envision Dynamics Tech (Jiangsu) Co Ltd | 5 |
| GRST International Ltd | Guangdong Haozhi Tech Co Ltd | 1 |
| GRST Singapore Pte Ltd | Guangdong Haozhi Tech Co Ltd | 1 |
Co-filing pairs, ranked by the number of jointly-filed patent families.
GRST leads on scale; Tosoh and Arakawa are new entrants with distinct technical angles
The ranking is shaped by GRST-affiliated entities that have built the broadest electrode-application portfolio, while Japanese chemical specialists Tosoh Corp and Arakawa Chemical Industries have recently entered with complementary polymer-chemistry emphases.
GRST Singapore Pte Ltd
Holds 28 patent families, the largest position in the corpus, focused overwhelmingly on H01M4 (electrode materials) with a secondary cluster in C08F220 (addition polymers). GRST International Ltd adds a further 10 families in close collaboration (5 joint filings). Recent momentum shows a sharp pullback (▼ –87% vs prior period), suggesting the initial portfolio build phase has plateaued.
families: 28Tosoh Corp
Holds 8 patent families as a new entrant (▲ new entrant), with a technical profile spanning H01M4 but also reaching into B01J (chemical and physical processes) and C02F (water and wastewater treatment) — an unusual cross-class footprint that may reflect binder processing or purification methods. Arakawa Chemical Industries likewise enters as a new entrant with 6 families, covering H01M4 and H01M50 alongside C08G73 (condensation polymers), signalling an interest in non-vinyl binder chemistries.
families: 8| Applicant | Recent (3 yrs) | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| GRST International Ltd | 3 | ▼ -87% |
| Tosoh Corp | 6 | ▲ new entrant |
| Arakawa Chemical Industries Ltd | 6 | ▲ new entrant |
| Jiangsu University of Technology | 3 | ▲ new entrant |
Under-served polymer and process branches adjacent to the electrode core
Several IPC classes appear in the corpus at low counts relative to the dominant H01M electrode class, representing areas where the prior-art density is comparatively thin. These are observations of relative sparsity; technical value and entry-path assessment requires further investigation.
C08G · Condensation polymers
With only 8 patent records and a 4% share among the IPC branches observed, condensation polymer chemistries (such as polyimides and polyurethanes) are sparsely covered relative to the vinyl-based addition-polymer mainstream. Arakawa Chemical Industries’ entry into C08G73 suggests these chemistries are technically viable for binder applications and that the prior-art barrier is lower here. Entrants with expertise in high-temperature-stable or flexible polymer backbones may find a realistic path.
Search this in Eureka →C08B · Polysaccharides & derivatives
Polysaccharide-derived binders — including cellulose and chitosan variants — appear in only 7 patent records, representing 3% of the observed IPC mix. Several highly cited documents in the corpus reference marine polysaccharide binders, suggesting technical interest is present but patent coverage remains thin. This branch aligns with sustainability-driven material substitution trends and may offer a differentiated entry point for groups with bio-polymer processing capability.
Search this in Eureka →How leading filers differ by technology route
Strength of each leader across the main technology routes.
| Player | H01M 4 · Batteries, cells & fuel cells | H01M 10 · Batteries, cells & fuel cells | C08F 220 · Addition polymers (vinyl etc.) | C09J 133 · Adhesives | C08F 2 · Addition polymers (vinyl etc.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GRST International Ltd | Strong · 27 | Emerging · 2 | Emerging · 5 | Absent | Absent |
| Blue Ocean & Black Stone Tech Co Ltd (Fujian) | Strong · 5 | Strong · 5 | Strong · 5 | Absent | Strong · 5 |
| Blue Ocean & Black Stone Tech Co Ltd (Beijing) | Strong · 3 | Strong · 3 | Strong · 3 | Strong · 2 | Strong · 3 |
| GRST Singapore Pte Ltd | Strong · 13 | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
| Guangdong Haozhi Tech Co Ltd | Strong · 10 | Absent | Emerging · 2 | Emerging · 1 | Absent |
| Envision Dynamics Tech (Jiangsu) Co Ltd | Strong · 5 | Strong · 4 | Absent | Absent | Emerging · 1 |
| Envision Ruitai Dynamics Tech (Shanghai) Co Ltd | Strong · 5 | Strong · 4 | Absent | Absent | Emerging · 1 |
Frequently asked questions
The corpus contains 117 patent families in scope across the global filing landscape analyzed.
GRST Singapore Pte Ltd leads with 28 patent families, followed by GRST International Ltd with 10 and Blue Ocean & Black Stone Tech Co Ltd (Fujian) and Tosoh Corp each with 8.
China is the lead jurisdiction with 43 patent records, followed by Europe (EPO) with 19, the United States with 17, and WIPO PCT with 13. Singapore, Australia, Japan, and Malaysia each have smaller presences.
No — the lifecycle stage is classified as post-peak. Annual filings peaked in 2020 at 35 families and have eased since then. The most recent years (2024–2026) are under-counted due to publication lag and should be treated as provisional.
H01M (batteries, cells and fuel cells) is the dominant IPC class, reflecting the applied-electrode focus of most filers. C08F (addition polymers) and C09J (adhesives) are the next-largest branches, with condensation polymers (C08G) and polysaccharides (C08B) appearing at lower counts.
Condensation polymers (C08G, 8 patent records) and polysaccharide-derived binders (C08B, 7 patent records) show comparatively thin prior-art coverage relative to the dominant electrode-application classes. These are observations of sparsity; whether they represent viable entry points depends on a filer’s specific polymer expertise and commercial target.
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Disclaimer. This page is generated from PatSnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent and scientific-literature records, and is provided for general information and reference only.
Patent data carries inherent limitations: recent filings (typically the most recent 18–24 months) are under-counted due to standard publication lag; counts may be reported at either a patent-family or a patent-record basis and are not always directly comparable; classification, applicant-name, and citation data may contain errors, duplicates, or omissions; and the underlying search query defines and constrains the scope shown. As a result, the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
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