Manufacturers and battery suppliers are fighting fires in electric cars, mostly caused by failures in the energy storage device. Investigating, a Japanese company has found special properties that make PVC an ideal material to offer extra protection against fires.
Electric cars are beginning to be a multitude throughout the world, and it is expected that by the middle of the next decade they will truly conquer a large part of the inhabited surface of the entire globe. Manufacturers and suppliers work in unison in the investigation of new chemistries to reduce the weight of batteries and at the same timeincrease energy density to offer great autonomy. This is one of the keys to the success of the electric car in all segments, as is the price of the component, today the most expensive electric drive system.
But there is a key that is also driving some manufacturers crazy, and they are the random fires that occur in electric cars and that, as a general rule, end in a total loss. An overheating ends in a sad ending, as well as one or more cells merge due to a manufacturing problem as has recently been detected in the Chevrolet Bolt. The Japanese of Sekisui Specialty Chemical They have found a very important key in this field. His investigations have concluded that PVC contains a series of properties that offer high protection against battery firesbeing up to 30 percent lighter than the aluminum currently in use.
PVC is a cheap solution against electrical fires
And, at the same time, it is also cheaper than the metallic element that requires a special film of an inorganic material to ensure extra protection against fire. Leading the team investigating this new technology is Masahiko Yamagata, lead development engineer for the project, who notes that “The biggest challenge is to avoid a fire explosion of the lithium-ion cellso as a manufacturer of chlorinated polyvinyl chloride, the company came up with the idea of fuse the polymer -PVC- with a fiberglass sheet to create a highly flame-retardant battery cover.”
Yamagata explained that one of the problems they have faced is combining thermoplastic with a high fiberglass content and transforming it into an easily processable product, since this latest composite material prints an extraordinary resistance. However, once this important challenge has been overcome, the tests carried out have given very positive results, since the use of this PVC as a battery box cover prevents that, in case of fire inside it, crosses the continent and spreads inside the vehicleending as a total loss.
The Japanese are in full validation tests, and they do not set a date for its implementation in the battery market, which also depends on finding a customer interested in this technology. Those of Sekisui Chemical point out important advantages such as the weight savings of using this material compared to aluminium, and with the added bonus that can be easily molded and recycled. Now, the ball is in the court of electric car manufacturers, and not necessarily Japanese, because they will not be limited to these, but Sekisui’s are open to any brand that requests their services.
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Sekisui Chemical