Volker Blandow
Global Head of e-Mobility at TÜV SÜD
Wednesday 27 October, 2021
In 2020, over 3.5 million Electric Vehicles (EVs) were sold globally. In 2021, this number is likely to increase to 6.5 million vehicles. According to most estimates the number of EVs sold is likely to double every year for the foreseeable future.
There are three driving forces behind this explosive growth of the EV market. The first, of course, is the growing environmental concern about global warming. In its latest report the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warned that unless there are immediate, rapid and large-scale reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, even the 2oC limitation goal will be beyond reach.
The consequences of this global warming are likely to be massive – increasing heat waves, longer warm seasons and shorter cold seasons, disrupted rainfall patterns leading to more intense droughts and flooding and rising ocean levels, to name just a few. Since emissions from transport is a major contributor, some governments are committed to encouraging the move towards electric vehicles (EVs).
E-mobility is already a major force in Europe and China and to an extent in the US. The EU is already talking in terms of moving completely away from the internal combustion engines to EVs by 2035 or even earlier. Governments of Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and India have also introduced policies and regulations encouraging e-mobility.
The second reason for EV popularity is consumer choice. EVs provide better performance, are noiseless and significantly reduce transportation costs.
The third driver is the progress in EV batteries. While the concept of E-mobility has been discussed for a while, till about a decade ago, EVs were a novelty. This was because of the performance of EV batteries. The battery technology had not been fully developed and left the EVs without too much of a range of about 100 miles per charge.
Today, however, thanks to the billions being invested into research and development into EV battery technology by the automotive sector, the scenario has changed completely. Batteries have become more powerful, giving EVs a larger range and better performance. What’s more, battery costs have dropped significantly. In seven years since 2013, the cost of an EV battery has dropped 80% from about USD 700-800 per kilowatt hour (kWh) to USD 100-130 per kWh. Companies like Tesla are promising a further 50% reduction in the next three to five years. Once costs come down to USD 60-70 per kWh the EV will equal the price tag of a gasoline car while the total cost of ownership – including the costs for the energy and maintenance – will be cheaper than today’s gasoline and diesel cars.
When it comes to EV batteries, auto companies or battery makers have to strike a balance between six key factors – capacity, power input and output, energy density in terms of volume as well as weight, safety concerns, costs and lifecycle management. The only way the equilibrium between these competing demands can be met is by rigorous testing.
EV batteries have to withstand several influences – both external and internal. External factors range from:
Internal factors range from:
TÜV SÜD has been in the forefront of battery testing over the last 15 years. This testing spans the entire spectrum. TÜV SÜD accompanies and covers the whole R&D process towards reliable and safe batteries, from cell evaluation, to module performance and safety towards pack evaluation. Homologation and certification testing is mandatory, for customers and TÜV SÜD labs towards regulatory authorities for certification and homologation. The second set of tests ensures that the battery meets standards set by national automotive industry bodies and general standards like DIN/ISO or any national regulation issued either by OEMs or their associations. The third set reflects more “freestyle” testing and highly customized and flexible tests tailored to the manufacturers’ specifications in terms of product performance. advanced safety, liability, quality management and its enhancement.
As EVs are becoming more popular the challenges for testing are also rising, in terms of size of batteries, their performance (high power levels) and increasing manufacturers’ specifications. To meet these, TÜV SÜD is constantly innovating and investing in its testing labs worldwide and close to automotive customers.
Some of the tests that TÜV SÜD carries out go way beyond the homologation standards set by national or international regulatory authorities. What happens if a battery is fast overcharged to the point that it explodes? What happens to the battery if a car is involved in a crash while going at 120 km/h. How will a battery react if it is heated up to 600C and then suddenly thrown into ice-cold water? Other tests performed by TÜV SÜD are addressing safety issues like in-vehicle battery fire, thermal runaway testing on pack level and fire brigade demonstrations on how to distinguish a battery fire out in the field. All these are unlikely scenarios in real life, but important from a car maker’s perspective for product safety, liability and quality. All TÜV SÜD EV battery testing labs are capable of conducting such tests safely and clean by capturing all harmful gases.
A typical battery testing set-up involves a climate chamber for testing humidity and temperature, power management to simulate charging, discharging and active driving cycles. Auxiliaries like cooling devices and all kinds of electric loads make sure the battery is meeting as real conditions as it gets. Mechanical impacts can be applied via massive vibration tables and while running a real driving cycle. At all stages we monitor the communication between the battery and the simulated vehicle or the charging device, at all stages we know exactly how the battery performs and what messages are sent out by the battery management system and additionally applied sensors. Temperature distribution patterns are important to understand the effectiveness of the cooling system, too step temperature rise profiles may hint to some design flaws and eventually increased aging of cells in that area. Understanding the “hot spots” is the first step towards a superior and robust battery system design.
But also outside conditions like water immersion, salt spray, high temperatures, extremely low temperatures are subject to be tested.
A typical testing and validation process at TÜV SÜD labs starts with defining the requirements together with the clients, followed by the creation of a sound test plan, determining test execution, preparing and carrying out the actual tests, failure analysis, and finally very high value input data for the final design phase and the implementation into the vehicle.
TÜV SÜD works closely with manufacturers in their research and development phases of EV batteries. This process ensure efficient spending of test budgets, makes data interpretation simpler and reduces the risk of major redesign at a late stage in the R&D process. Pre-tested batteries usually have very minor issues when finally entering homologation and certification procedures as all main criteria have been addressed beforehand. Not only in the testing leading to the homologation but also during this TÜV SÜD supports its customers for various markets.
To fulfil requirements of clients, governments and customers in ASEAN and other emerging markets, TÜV SÜD also tests batteries over their entire lifecycle. This involves going beyond the battery’s first life in an EV. The second life could involve its use in another vehicle or connecting it to electrical grids as an energy storage system. The last stage marks an audit for the correct recycling towards the goal of closed material cycles as batteries contain a lot of precious materials. More and more countries will set up and implement regulations and directives towards a circular economy, each battery system will get a unique identification mark to trace the whole life cycle eventually, even if cars are exported.
TÜV SÜD labs are also equipped to carry out other tests related to the Power Control Unit (PCU), the Battery Management System (BMS), the motors, the onboard charging unit among others as well as the charging infrastructure. To assist clients, TÜV SÜD has eleven EV battery and component testing labs located across the world. As a founding member of the CharIN consortium and by being member of the CHAdeMO association we fully understand all the challenges connected to quick charging and super-fast-charging. Communication protocol testing of DC fast chargers ensures a seamless and safe customer experience while charging.
But TÜV SÜD is also addressing completely different layers of electric mobility. Fuel cell vehicles will become the “natural” complement to battery electric vehicles, especially in heavy duty applications and in fleets where refueling needs to be extremely fast. As hydrogen will be an important energy vector in the future, we will also see hydrogen vehicles powered by fuel cells on our roads. TÜV SÜD of course is also a solid partner when it comes to the safety of pressurized systems in the vehicle or in their refueling infrastructures at the gasoline station.
Sources:
Special report Global Warming of 1.5 ºC — (ipcc.ch)
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