PRODUCTS & SERVICES
Rethinking the box
Reduce driving range anxiety, increase reliability and efficiency, look for a lower TCO –
that’s the scope of this Dynamic Insulating System for BEV and PHEV battery packs
170 // January 2020 // www.electrichybridvehicletechnology.com
Battery pack 9kWh PHEV
There is a burning question in
this industry: will customers
buy the electric vehicles that OEMs
are starting to mass produce?
A global survey conducted
by Deloitte LLP in 2018 revealed
customers’ biggest concerns over
purchasing a BEV: driving range,
the premium price and a lack
of charging infrastructure. The
fact is that potential BEV drivers
are nervous, but so too are new
customers when they look in their
owner’s manual for information
on caring for their new car.
“If the vehicle is left standing
in the cold for a long time, protect
the vehicle battery from freezing.
A battery will be permanently
damaged by freezing,” is one
common warning.
“Failure to protect and care for
the high-voltage battery can lead
to serious damage/or a decrease
of the capacity void coverage under
the new vehicle limited warranty,”
is another.
Has the customer to assume
these robustness problems, despite
already paying a large sum of money
for a brand-new BEV?
OEMs are looking for higher
reliability and e iciency, fleet owners
for better TCO and customers for
peace of mind – which is where
Hutchinson Group comes in.
Recognized globally as an expert in
thermal management, insulating and
lightweight solutions for mobility
applications, the company has
launched its new DIS – Dynamic
Insulating System – to address
precisely these concerns.
DIS is a combination of insulating
materials and formulated phasechange
materials surrounding the
battery pack. Its goal is to maintain
the lithium-ion cells at their optimal
operating temperature range:
15-35°C (59-95°F) during long
periods of time (more than 12
hours) with the vehicle parked
and unplugged, and with the
outside temperature ranging
from -20°C-40°C (-4°- 113°F).
The innovation is in using
VIP Vacuum Insulating Panel
technology with very high insulating
performances, four times better
than air in a reduced volume,
combined with elastomer
compounds containing several
phase-change materials with
di erent melting temperatures.
These materials have been
designed to preserve their thermal
characteristics during the battery
lifetime and to avoid any exudation
or volume changes.
The company’s assessment
of DIS performance was done
by equipping two existing battery
packs, one for a BEV model (33kWh)
and the other for a PHEV model
(9kWh). Hutchinson Group then
conducted calibrating tests with
and without DIS in a climatic
chamber at the Fraunhofer Institute.
The company has used these
results, combined with the ageing
characteristics of the cells and a
complete simulation of the thermal
architecture of a vehicle, to conduct
simulations with the software
Simcenter Amesim.
By creating a daily urban-use
scenario in three di erent European
Battery pack 33kWh BEV
towns for up to 10 years, the
company has introduced the
cyclical and calendaring ageing of
the battery cells in three di erent
climate conditions.
The results below reveal two
things. Firstly, there is a flat curve
with the DIS at T+1year, which
means the vehicle equipped with
a DIS is much less sensitive to
changes in weather conditions. The
driving range is more reliable and
the electric consumption is lower.
Secondly, there is a flat curve
with the DIS at T+10 years, with the
battery capacity remaining above
70%. This shows the potential for
the DIS to preserve a higher asset
value, release design constraints
for the OEM, o er a better TCO to
the fleet owner and above all give
the customer peace of mind.
The complementary advantages
Hutchinson Group can observe are
promising: less charging time, better
and longer vehicle operability, lower
consumption and CO2 emissions for
the PHEV, better compatibility when
fast charging the battery and when
playing vehicle to grid strategy.
FREE READER INQUIRY SERVICE
To learn more about Hutchinson Group,
visit: www.magupdate.co.uk/PEHV
Ageing simulation results with and without DIS for a 33kWh battery pack
/www.electrichybridvehicletechnology.com
/PEHV