There are at least two dimensions to battery efficiency. Perhaps we are too obsessed with energy density per unit of weight and size. Maybe we should focus more of our attention on the consumption side. Lighter weight batteries in electric cars should reduce their energy demand, all other factors unaltered. We open a book at a fresh page that’s worth exploring.
Where Lighter Weight Batteries Belong in the Mix
Battery makers are trying everything they can to improve the energy-efficiency-per-dollar of their products. This includes introducing new chemistries, and new designs on the supply side to make manufacturing more efficient.
On the demand side, vehicle makers are flattening battery profiles, to allow lower, more streamlined vehicles, and introducing more efficient electric motors. Now it is time, per Autocar Pro, to reduce the weight of the batteries themselves.
As we follow that thought, we hope this would not reduce the safety shield around lithium-ion batteries, because that’s become important too. Or diminish the effectiveness of battery management systems for that matter. We decided to delve deeper into this topic, and report back.
How Could We Safely Shave Weight Off Batteries?
Reducing the weight of an electric vehicle increases its traction efficiency, and therefore reduces its energy consumption too, all other things being equal. Autocar Pro assures us that battery-pack-weight makes electric cars 20–30% heavier than gasoline versions.
Those same battery packs also occupy 50-60% of their vehicles’ interior space. This increases their bulk, and as a result their wind drag factor. It becomes increasingly evident that having smaller, lighter weight batteries should reduce the cost of manufacturing and operating electric cars:
- Battery makers are searching for materials with greater power-to-weight ratios.
- They are also seeking out less volatile materials that could reduce safety shielding.
We have learned that some EV battery makers are investigating alternative battery housings, or even eliminating those enclosures completely. They are moving away from aluminum to much lighter polymers, and hoping to shave some weight off electric vehicles that way. We’ll be back with an update when we have more news.
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