Fast charging cold Li-ion batteries comes with the risk of lithium plating. When metallic lithium is formed in a battery, it can severely reduce battery lifespan and increase instability. Researchers from Penn State have suggested a solution to that problem that can provide 15-minute fast charging and a twelve-year battery lifespan in temperatures as low as… Read more »
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2019 Jaguar I-PACE: An apex brand pounces on the electric crossover scene
Believe it or not, we may have a BEV SUV turf war on our hands. Many of the major automakers have announced plans to produce all-electric crossovers, including Mercedes, Volvo, Hyundai, Kia and Volkswagen – not to mention the onslaught startups like SF Motors, Faraday Future, Byton and Rivian. The all-electric Audi e-tron SUV is… Read more »
New thermoelectric superlattice doubles rate at which waste heat is converted to electricity
Researchers from Hokkaido University and colleagues in Japan and Taiwan have improved the ability to transform wasted heat into usable electricity by narrowing the space through which spread electrons move, according to a new study published in Nature Communications. Currently, more than 60 percent of the energy produced by fossil fuels is lost as waste… Read more »
Tesla cranks up new Model 3 production line – in a tent?
Tesla appears to be closing in on its goal of producing 5,000 units of Model 3 cars per week. The Silicon Valley superhero team just unveiled a third production line, apparently assembled in a mere three weeks in a lightweight aluminum structure next to the Fremont factory. [Editor’s note: The structure has been widely described… Read more »
How to protect circuits in battery management systems
Sponsored by Littelfuse By Carlos Castro, Global Director Marketing Automotive Electronics, Littelfuse, Inc. As hybrid and electric vehicles roll closer to battery power drive systems with 48V or higher, the lithium-ion battery in a closed system is the clear leader for power. Lithium-ion gets high marks in cost, energy efficiency, temperature performance, power-to-weight ratio and lifecycle…. Read more »
Tecnomatic helps automakers design specialty assembly processes for advanced stator technologies
There seems to be an endless array of electric motor topologies, architectures, and configurations. Among the many design choices that engineers face is the shape of copper wire that is wound in the stator. In a new paper published in the IEEE Transactions on Industry Applications, researchers compared using flat wire hairpin winding and stranded… Read more »
A look at Lucid Motors: Q&A with CTO Peter Rawlinson
The legacy automakers are slowly and methodically developing new EVs, with various levels of enthusiasm, but the most ambitious plans for new vehicles are coming from a handful of EV startups. Most of these pioneers of the new auto industry share a formula: deep-pocketed investors (many from China), former Tesla employees on staff, and plans… Read more »
PNNL research finds that optimal salt concentration increases battery life
Researchers at the DOE’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have discovered that the “special sauce” of batteries is all about the salt concentration. By getting the right amount of salt right where they want it, they’ve demonstrated that a lithium-metal battery can undergo about seven times more charge/discharge cycles than batteries with conventional electrolytes. Finding an electrolyte solution… Read more »
SF Motors teases two new EVs, plans to begin production this year
After two years in stealth mode, Santa Clara-based SF Motors recently announced details of two upcoming EVs, the SF5 and the SF7. The SF5 will be available for pre-order by the end of 2018 and is scheduled to hit the road in 2019. The company plans to begin vehicle production this year at its facilities… Read more »
Aqueous anode enables super-fast charging
An international team of scientists, including researchers from the DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory, has discovered an anode material that enables super-fast charging and offers stable operation over many thousands of cycles. In a recent article in Nature Communications, Argonne Battery Scientist Jun Lu and colleagues describe a water-bearing compound, lithium titanate hydrate, that could replace… Read more »