Thursday, December 12, 2024
By Kamal Swami
Will This Be A Slap On China's Monopoly?
China's monopoly on rare earth components has been challenged by many countries, which have started the production of microchips and other materials required to manufacture batteries for electric vehicles. Between this changing scenario, a recent study conducted by scientists at the SLAC-Stanford Battery Center has found an important flaw in the methods used in testing EV batteries. According to the study, testing the batteries in real-world situations can extend the lifespan of EV batteries, one of the major reasons for EV buyers.
For many EV owners, battery maintenance and the cost of replacing the battery is always a matter of concern. To combat this problem, EV manufacturers are focussing on developing advanced batteries with longer life. The recent study suggests, that these efforts aren’t as important as focussing on testing the performance of batteries in real-world conditions.
The study has found a flaw in traditional laboratory testing methods, which concentrate on constant discharge and recharge cycles to determine battery life. Although this process is mainly used universally, it fails to assess the conditions that EV owners face on the road. For instance, in daily use, EV owners have to stop at traffic signals, wait at parking stands, drive vehicles for short and long distances, and variations in charging behaviour. All these are real-world situations. However, drivers also benefit from regenerative braking, which partially recharges the battery during deceleration, and short bursts of acceleration. All these steps are not considered while testing the performance of the battery in the laboratory.
To better understand the life duration of a battery, scientists designed four distinct discharge profiles based on real-world driving data. The research concluded for almost two years, during this period they tested 92 commercially available lithium-ion battery packs under these profiles. The results were both surprising and counterintuitive. For example, short, sharp accelerations were found to reduce battery degradation, while regenerative braking positively impacted battery lifespan. On the contrary, factors such as extreme heat or cold proved dangerous to battery health, though the study maintained a constant temperature of 35° Celsius during testing.
The results achieved challenged the common belief that real-world driving conditions shorten battery life. The fact is that results achieved during the study reveal that real-world situations may actually improve battery longevity when compared to controlled lab tests. This opens the way for improved battery management software. Automakers can now use these results to optimize battery lifespan, offer longer warranties, and ultimately enhance buyer confidence.
Although there is a need to work more in this direction, the results can for sure encourage the adoption of EV vehicles. Moving ahead, this will also eliminate the dominance of China, which till a few years back tried to dominate the world with the supply of chips and other components under the rare earth plan, because of its supremacy.
