Engineering consultancy Drive System Design (DSD) has partnered with software specialists Altair and FluiDyna to develop and enhance nanoFluidX, a computer modelling technique that is used to analyze lubrication flow. DSD uses nanoFluidX to reduce drivetrain drag losses, which the company says represent the largest energy draw on the battery pack at speeds up to… Read more »
Posts By: Travis Horesh
Chile selects two companies for lithium projects
Chile’s state development agency, CORFO, has selected the Chilean firm Molymet and China’s Fulin Group (a joint venture between Samsung SDI and South Korea’s POSCO) to develop value-added lithium products in Chile. Within two years, the companies are expected to be ready to produce some 58,000 metric tons of cathode materials per year. This announcement… Read more »
Shipping industry stakeholders partner to establish standards for maritime use of lithium-ion batteries
More than a dozen shipping-related organizations, including flag states, research institutions, battery and propulsion suppliers, fire extinguishing system providers and ship operators, have formed a joint development project to advance the understanding of the use of lithium-ion batteries in the shipping industry. The new project aims to create a deep pool of expertise from different… Read more »
Gamma Technologies acquires battery modeling software from EC Power
Gamma Technologies has acquired the battery modeling software package AutoLion from EC Power. AutoLion, a predictive, physics-based simulation software that models the internal electrochemical processes of Li-ion batteries, will augment GT-SUITE, Gamma Technologies’ multi-physics automotive-related CAE system simulation tool. Battery suppliers and OEMs use AutoLion for 1D and 3D battery analysis and design. It includes… Read more »
Johnson Controls considers selling its automotive battery business
Conglomerate Johnson Controls has announced that it may sell its Power Solutions division, which provides batteries to the automotive sector. “Creating shareholder value is our top priority,” said CEO George Oliver. “Our focus is on improving operational execution, realizing merger synergy and productivity benefits, and optimizing the business portfolio. Given the differing dynamics of [Johnson’s… Read more »
UK lithium sulfur battery firm OXIS secures funding to expand to Brazil
UK battery technology company OXIS Energy will receive a £3.7-million investment from the Brazilian private equity fund Aerotec, paving the way for OXIS to open a subsidiary in Brazil. The agreement provides for a Brazilian team to be trained at OXIS Energy’s headquarters in Oxford, as well as the creation of an R&D center in… Read more »
EVs expected to boost demand for aluminum
A recent analysis by mining and metals consultancy CRU finds that demand for aluminum, driven by increased production of plug-in vehicles, is set to skyrocket by the year 2030. Demand will reach nearly 10 million metric tons, a tenfold increase over 2017 levels. According to CRU, demand for “primary aluminum-intensive extrusions and rolled products will… Read more »
Saft joins forces with European partners to develop advanced Li-ion and solid-state tech
Battery manufacturer Saft, a subsidiary of oil giant Total, has announced that it will join forces with a handful of European partners to form a development R&D partnership focused on creating cutting-edge batteries. Saft CEO Ghislain Lescuyer recognizes that “batteries are at the heart of the current technological revolution. Their development and production play a… Read more »
New Li-ion battery sensor tech promises 5x faster charging
According to researchers at the University of Warwick (UK), a new testing technique they have developed shows that commercially available lithium-ion batteries can safely be charged up to five times faster than currently recommended. In a paper entitled “Understanding the limits of rapid charging using instrumented commercial 18650 high-energy Li-ion cells,” published in the journal Electrochimica… Read more »
MDL’s new Motor-CAD v11 motor design software
Motor design software specialist Motor Design Limited (MDL) has released a new version of its Motor-CAD software package. Motor-CAD is aimed at motor designers, and is designed to perform quick and easy electromagnetic and thermal performance tests on electric machine designs. Motor-CAD is composed of three main modules: EMag, Therm, and Lab. The EMag module… Read more »