Q1. How is industry leveraging the changes and emerging opportunities in the automobile sector?
Rising fuel costs along with rapid climate change has given rise to the need for a more sustainable option—something that is affordable and environment-friendly. Electric vehicles (EVs) and hybrid automobiles can lower fuel costs and reduce carbon emissions. Additionally, they are affordable and eco-friendly too. We feel the current set of EV products will become obsolete in the next 12 months and the industry will move towards more smart and intelligent products.
According to a leading consultancy firm, electrification will play an important role in the transformation of the mobility industry. It presents major opportunities in all vehicle segments, although the pace and extent of change will differ. They further say that the transformation of the automotive industry towards electrification will disrupt the entire supply chain and create a significant shift in market size for automotive components. In the Indian automobile market, electric vehicles (EVs) are fast moving into the spotlight.
The Industry is moving towards ICE based mechanical systems to Motor, Battery, relays etc based on electronics system. Demand for mechanical components like Engine, Gear Box, machining components, exhaust system etc will go down and demand for electric components like motor, battery, relays, PCBs, GPS devices, Fuse will go up.
Electric 2W, 3W and Lithium Battery market in India is doubling and tripling every year. We, at Battrixx are committed towards green energy. We have supplied 50,000+ batteries in last 1 year time to top 2Wheeler OEMs in India. Battrixx Team has been continuously designing and supplying customized lithium-ion battery packs, Battery Management System (BMS) for electric two-wheeler and three-wheeler vehicles, light commercial vehicles and swapping stations.
Battrixx designed BMS provides intelligent battery management with focus on complete pack monitoring and safety where dimensions and cell configuration can be customized for optimum usage.
We are also carrying out a lot of new product developments. In fact, we have almost completed an AIS facility similar to what the Automotive Research Authority of India (ARAI) does. It is expensive equipment, but we want to have the entire facility. While we still need to go to ARAI, with it we will have a replication facility.
Q2. Why is battery safety essential to EVs and what new chemistries are being developed as protection against catching fire?
Battery safety is essential to avoid situations where EV batteries catch fire, causing serious threats to the lives of drivers and passengers. Lithium-ion battery packs, which are mostly in use now, have a considerable market demand. This huge demand requires advanced quality, safety, energy and power density, along with durability.
Battery is like any other Fuel like Diesel or Petrol. Mostly, the fire incidents happen due to short circuit in any electronics components or wiring harness and that is the reason why fire incident also happened in ICE (existing EC Engine vehicles) renowned brands as well.
Earlier, there was the AIS 48 standard, under which batteries were tested and approved for all high-speed vehicles. Now, the ARAI has come up with a new standard called the AI-156 standard that matches international standards.
At ARAI, batteries are tested for certain aspects and conditions. But situations on the field can be a little different. For instance, there can be an electrical short-circuit, or a charger failure. We cannot anticipate every scenario during tests. So, battery manufacturers and OEMs should think of additional safety tests that can actually be carried out. There should be more standards coming in. So, how do we make early detections? We can put in some ‘smart’ devices into a battery as safety gadgets. Battery pack manufacturers should adopt a ‘no-compromise attitude’ towards battery safety. And making lithium-ion batteries ‘smart’ can be a good option. Multiple layers of intelligence can be built into the batteries which can diagnose and predict abnormal performance or use of a battery. This can help us ensure battery safety and prevent untoward incidents.
The six chemistries used today are lithium iron phosphate (LFP), lithium manganese oxide (LMO), lithium cobalt oxide (LCO), lithium nickel cobalt aluminium (NCA), lithium nickel cobalt manganese (NCM) and lithium titanate oxide (LTO).
Besides the present generation of lithium-ion technology, several chemistries are now under study that could become the next standard in the near future. Some chemistries in the development stage are solid-state batteries, lithium-ion with high nickel and silicon content batteries, lithium-sulphur batteries, lithium-metal batteries, lithium-air batteries, sodium-ion batteries, aluminium-ion batteries, magnesium-ion batteries and zinc-air batteries.
Q3. Will evolving solid-state batteries be better than lithium-ion batteries from the point of view of cost-effectiveness too?
Solid-state batteries have the potential of delivering high specific energy and power density and there are significantly fewer concerns over safety and thermal stability than liquid or gel-based lithium-ion batteries. But the use of these batteries is limited at the moment.
First, the mass production and manufacturing of solid-state batteries is complex. And second, research on this is still in progress. Moreover, the perfect material for the electrolyte with an ideal ionic conductivity is yet to be found.
So, a commercially viable solid-state battery that can compete with traditional lithium-ion batteries is yet to be developed. We expect this new technology to come soon. But these batteries will be for higher-priced EV models.
Q4. What technological developments are evolving for battery cooling for EVs to prevent damage from heat generated?
So, there are 2 aspects to it. One, there are different thermal options in Active and Passive both to keep the temperature of the battery within safe temperature zone and second, there are multiple things, such as fuses, vents, IP ratings and early detection devices that can sense temperature build-up within cells. These multiple small devices can be put in as possible solutions. Then, there is thermal management or the cooling of a pack, which the government can mandate. An active cooling system can be very expensive, but it can be done.
The government should come out with some more components that should be insisted upon in the standard. India being a low-cost market, there are entry-level models that really need upgrade.
Battrixx has been continuously working with Local design team with support from Global Technology partners. Battrixx has developed solutions like active and passive cooling as well as in the case of ‘external abuse’, how to protect the battery from thermal stocks, water ingress etc. We are pushing all our OEMs to adopt all these safety standards and many of them are already upgrading the packs accordingly.
Q5. Do you think regulatory and financial schemes will promote production and manufacture of batteries indigenously?
Regulatory and Financial schemes can act like an activation agent but for long term, battery manufacturers have to be self dependent. But for now the industry and the technology is evolving daily. No one want to invest in such a changing environment. Even if you look at the history China, US, Europe the common factor is EV growth is always supported by Regulatory and Financial schemes by Govt. Govt of India is very clear on its direction and schemes like GST cut, Central and state govt subsidies on purchase of EV/FAME II, PLI scheme is helping the companies to grow at much faster rate. Many companies is actually setting up Cell Manufacturing facility in India which is 70% contributor Lithium Battery Pack by valuation. After FAME II subsidy announced India has seen Twice and Thrice growth in market demand.
