Electric vehicles

IDTechEx attended the Battery Show Europe 2023 in Stuttgart, Germany. This premium article provides an overview of learnings from the event on the topics of battery recycling, second-life, and battery analytics.

There are several technologies competing in the automotive display space, however there are two dominant approaches, TFT-LCDs with mini-LED backlight and OLED displays. Automotive displays are becoming larger and brighter and with the current emphasis on promoting passenger experience, this trend will only grow in the future. Both technologies have known strengths and weaknesses, and this premium article will cover the ways in which companies are mitigating these weaknesses to remain competitive in the market. Techniques such as full-array local dimming used by TFT-LCDs or a new approach introduced by a company called Excyton that further decreases the power consumption in OLED devices are covered in this article.

Battery performance testing forms an important part of the second-life EV battery market. Remanufacturers will aim to use the best-performing EV batteries in their final second-life systems, such as stationary storage systems or lower-power electromobility applications.

Forecasts taken from IDTechEx report "Electric Motors for Electric Vehicles 2024-2034"

Large excavators (defined in this article as more than 6-tonne) are the biggest construction vehicle market, both in volume and revenue. Their popularity, size and diesel engines mean they are a significant contributor of emissions from the construction vehicle industry. They are a high priority vehicle for the industry to electrify but their size, intense workload and exposure to large shocks present more of a challenge for electrification. Early large excavator electrification was led by regional distributors conducting retrofitting projects. Paying full price for an ICE machine then incurring additional costs for labor and electric components made these examples unsustainably expensive. OEMs are now bringing larger excavator electrification in house, which IDTechEx predicts will bring significant cost savings, generating a favorable TCO. This premium article covers potential emission savings by moving to electric, performance of electric compared to diesel, which OEMs have prototype and production vehicles and case studies and estimated cost total cost of ownership breakdown.

Ascend Performance Materials presented its X-Protect technology to increase the melting temperature of nylon 66 (polyamide) with key applications in EV battery packs.

NIO are a Chinese manufacturer of premium electric vehicles.

Innovation roadmap for thermal interface material formats.

The construction industry is in the early stages of electrification. Many of the leading OEMs now have multiple electric offerings over a range of machine types and the electric construction vehicle market is beginning to take off

This premium article introduces destination DC charging, comparing it with onboard chargers (OBC).

Eaton Research Laboratories provides research into various areas to enable new technologies and products for Eaton Corporation. IDTechEx spoke to a representative from the Advanced Materials and Processes division of Eaton Research Laboratories to learn about its newly developed PEEK insulation material for electric motors.

Na-ion is probably the most prominent metal-ion battery chemistry outside of Li-ion, working via the same 'rocking chair' (where the alkali-ion shuttles from a non-metal anode to a cathode during discharge and vice versa during charge) principle of reversible cation intercalation, at a positive and negative electrode.

Ecobat is headquartered in Texas, US. The company is primarily a lead and polypropylene commodity producer and recycler and has Li-ion battery recycling capabilities too. This background profile discusses the company's involvement in the Li-ion battery recycling market.

Innovation roadmap for the Na-ion key player landscape.

Exigo Recycling was founded in 2012, is based in India, and focuses on electronic assets management and recycling, including Li-ion battery recycling.

This IDTechEx premium article discusses the rising interest in hydrogen fuel cell technologies for the rail sector, with details on system suppliers and the more than 70 projects emerging for multiple unit (MU) fuel cell trains through to 2024.

Like many industries, the construction vehicle and machine industry is on the path to electrification. It has been one of the latecomers to the electrification game, with little happening from OEMs until after 2020. But this is changing, with more electric product announcements covering a wider selection of vehicle types under the construction banner.

This premium article looks at the main drivers for electrifying mini excavators and demonstrates through data analysis how mini excavators can have equal or even superior performance to their diesel counterparts. The article explains how fuel and maintenance savings could provide a return on investment if the premium for the electric vehicle is correct. Finally electric mini-excavator case studies from Volvo, JCB and XCMG are presented.

Innovation roadmap comparing Na-ion and Li-ion.

RecycLiCo Battery Materials Inc. is a battery materials company focused on recycling and upcycling lithium-ion battery waste. It has designed a patented process which processes black mass and cathode scrap to produce precursor cathod active material (pCAM) and high purity lithium hydroxide (LiOH). IDTechEx caught up with CEO and Director of RecycLiCo, Zarko Meseldzija, to learn about the company's developments.