EV LUBRICANTS
“Bearings, transmission systems and
so on all need fluids that are able to
operate at these high speeds”
Dr Selda Gunsel, vice president of technology, Shell
GOING GREENER
EVs will make an enormous difference
to Shell’s business, according to
Richard Tucker, the company’s e-fluids
spokesman. He explains that in years
past, a lot of used oil removed from
cars would simply be incinerated. The
way EV motors and transmissions are
produced means the new products are
predominantly aimed at manufacturers,
rather than the aftermarket.
“OEMs are much more discerning now,”
he says. “But they are also working
with lead times of three or four years,
and in the electric transmission space
everybody is learning at the same time.
These products are directed mainly at
the first fill for OEMs market. That’s the
way the world is going for EVs. The big
volume is at the moment is in engine oils,
it’s consumption, so you need top-ups.
But modern engines have to be much
more efficient because of emission, and
that should see much less waste.”
www.electrichybridvehicletechnology.com
// January 2020 // 63
having touch points, such as thermal
management. Within e-powertrain, you’ll
fi nd solutions as e-powertrain fl uids, hybrid
compatible engine oils and e-greases.
At e-powerplant level, battery cell chemistry
is key, from binders to rheology modifi ers
that include electrode insulation materials.
Lubrizol is working toward enhancing the
performance and safety of lithium-ion
batteries, which is crucial for
the development of electric
vehicles, as well as battery
thermal management.
“We are expanding our
e-mobility solutions
beyond vehicles to provide
solutions for the charging
infrastructure, with EV
charging cable jackets for
high-end applications,” says
Branquet. “We aim to satisfy the
various needs for each of the players
along the value chain, including cable
manufacturers, OEMs and end users.”
It’s also worth considering how diff erent
e-fl uids are compared to their traditional
counterparts. “Next-generation electrifi ed
designs will bring a more challenging
environment for the lubricant: increasing
voltages, diff erent temperature
regimes, more copper wiring
and structural plastics,” says
Branquet. “Ever-tightening
e ciency targets along with
improved thermal
conductivity drive fl uids to
lower viscosities where
durability becomes a tougher
challenge. Conventional fl uids
may not deliver the performance
needed in the higher-stress
environments. For optimum e ciency,
speed-to-market and reduced risk of failures
means that developing dedicated e-fl uids in
parallel with the hardware is paramount.”
Bigger picture
Meanwhile, Shell’s vice president of
technology, Dr Selda Gunsel, knows exactly
what the market demands, and is the lead of
a global group of scientists and engineers
working on the company’s
specialty products. “Electric
vehicles operate under totally
diff erent duty cycles to those
that use conventional engines,”
she says. “They operate at very
high speeds, so bearings,
transmission systems and so on
all need fl uids that are able to
operate at these high speeds. At
high speeds you can get a lot of
air into the fl uid, and if you get air bubbles into
a lubricating fl uid you can cause severe
cavitation and bearing failures, so the
high-speed aspect is one issue. Also, electrical
components have a lot of new materials, so we
have to make sure that our fl uids are
compatible with those.”
Gunsel explains that in conventional
lubricants a lot of additives are used for
reducing friction or preventing wear on
rubbing surfaces. These additives are actually
corrosive to electrical components, so the
formulations have to be changed and tailored
to work in the new operating conditions and
t 3
3. Shell has developed
a range of e-motor oils
and lubricants to cope
with the high speeds
they operate
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