Text | Zinc
Nowadays, the attention of pure electric vehicles is getting higher and higher, but the strength of products is always uneven, if you can make the mileage longer, the charging speed faster, and the loss less, it is better. It's fast approaching the end of the year, and today we're going to take stock of the hot black technologies for electric vehicles that can help improve these capabilities.
Selling it first, we also found a product that everyone will definitely attach great importance to in the future.
Black technology that makes electric vehicles farther, faster and more economical
1. Multi-gear transmission
Pure electric vehicles mostly use a single-stage reducer architecture with a motor, and this single-speed ratio design will lead to weak high-speed re-acceleration ability and poor economy.
The solution to this problem is to use a multi-gear transmission. For example, porsche Taycan, it uses a 2AT gearbox, the first gear deceleration ratio of 15:1, the start is still fast; the second gear deceleration ratio of 8:1, can reduce the motor speed, and then accelerate the ability is strong.
ZF's 2-speed two-speed transmission for all-electric vehicles is equally impressive, cutting into second gear at 69km/h and increasing range by around 5%. See watermark for image source.
2. Direct cooling system
The mainstream battery pack cooling system generally uses the indirect cooling mode for the module, and it is easy to encounter the problem of poor cell temperature consistency and large local heat generation when continuous ultra-fast charging.
The solution to this problem is to use a direct cooling system for the battery cells. For example, GM's battery-level cooling technology, which uses a frame to combine the battery cell, cooling sheet, and foam to form a MINI stacking unit to ensure that the battery can always be at the most suitable working temperature.
This year, MAHLE, a well-known automotive liquid management system manufacturer, also released the "immersion cooling technology" for batteries, which can reduce the maximum temperature of the battery during charging and distribute the battery temperature more evenly. See watermark for image source.
3. Hub motor
Now the motor generally adopts the center one front and one rear setting, it will encroach on the space inside the car, and due to the limited development of the transmission structure, the work efficiency improvement space is limited.
The solution to this problem is the hub motor. The wheel motor technology exposed by BYD this year is worth a look. It integrates power, transmission and braking devices into the hub and does not encroach on the space inside the car; because it drives the wheels directly, there is no energy loss during the transmission process.
BYD's supercar products are equipped with in-wheel motors. The picture comes from BYD's patent "Wheel Hub Electric Drive System, Drive Wheel and Vehicle", application number: 201910797679.4
In the future, do not neglect the oil maintenance of electric vehicles
The U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory released a study in July that found that the maintenance cost of pure electric vehicles is about 40% lower than that of fuel vehicles. The key reason for this is that the electric structure is "simpler" and there are fewer maintenance items. For example, electric vehicles do not have timing belts, oxygen sensors, fuel filters, spark plugs, multi-speed transmissions and other components, maintenance items are reduced, and fuel vehicles need to replace oil regularly, and electric vehicles do not need.
But I think we can't ignore the maintenance of electric vehicles, especially with the upgrading of electric vehicle technology, maintenance requirements will become higher and higher.
For example, the three black technologies mentioned above, if they want to perform well in cars, the transmission oil they use, the thermal management oil or grease of the battery system is extremely important.
Castrol, the world's recognized lubricant specialist, has developed a Castrol E-Starter range of products specifically for electric vehicles. This may not have been understood by everyone in the past, but in the long run, it is very necessary.
Why we say this, let's read them one by one.
1) Transmission oil
The electric vehicle motor transmission of the future will add a transmission device to increase the speed, and the synchronous system will operate at high speed and under load, so that the motor can operate more efficiently. But the immediate problem with this is the risk of slippage in the synchronization system and clutch.
Castrol has done a study to improve the friction control level of E-starter enhanced oil-cooled motor transmission oil, achieving efficient variable speed at high loads and high speeds, and improving motor efficiency. Why this is so, Presumably Castrol sees the need.
2) Thermal management oil
Regarding the thermal management oil, it cannot be ignored, first of all, in case of leakage, there will be problems such as electrolyte conductivity and corrosion of the battery. There used to be a module protector, but now it is directly pointed to the battery cell, so the thermal management fluid used in the direct cooling method must have the characteristics of non-conductive, corrosive, and good safety performance.
In addition, it is this thermal management oil working mode is more special, the viscosity of the liquid should be appropriate. Take GM's cooling technology as an example, the core of this liquid cooling system is a capillary cooling plate, on the cooling plate evenly distributed coolant diversion tank, but in order not to occupy space, the thickness of the cooling plate is only 0.2mm.
This is like the body's blood is too viscous to block capillaries and increase the risk of disease, so it is also important to control the viscosity of the thermal management oil and ensure that the coolant flows smoothly in the capillary cooling sheet.
Castrol E Start Battery System Thermal Management Fluids are designed for the above requirements, such as its strong insulation properties, high ignition point to prevent battery failure and ignition, and oxidation resistance to keep the oil from dragging its feet during its life cycle. It also has a lower viscosity and better flowability than conventional dielectric fluids, so it can handle new designs well.
3) Grease
Hub motors have extremely high output speeds, which require lubrication of the relevant bearings, seals and other components. Moreover, the wheel hub motor belongs to the high-voltage electrical parts in electric vehicles, and the grease needs to have a high dielectric strength (large dielectric strength and good insulation performance).
Castrol includes a range of high-performance greases designed for electric vehicle components, like the above questions, its grease has the effect of improving bearing efficiency, increasing vehicle range, and it can adapt well to live environments to ensure long-lasting operation.
To sum up, it is foreseeable that in the future, transmission oil, battery system thermal management oil, and grease are critical. From today's perspective, it may not be easy to understand why Castrol is "redundant". But in the long run, as eviction technology moves towards "farther, faster, and more economical", maintenance products must follow suit.
Rebecca Yates, vice president of advanced mobility and industrial products at bp/Castrol (right) and Paul McNamara, technical director at Williams Advanced Engineering (left)
In fact, in the field of electric racing, which represents the cutting-edge technology of automobiles, there is already a strong demand for Castrol products. According to industry sources, from May 2022, Castrol will develop and provide electric vehicle thermal management fluids for Williams' high-performance racing batteries. Earlier, Castrol and Jaguar team also had a long-term relationship in the ABB FIA Formula E Championship.
Castrol Marketing & Global OEM Customer Vice President AS. Ramchander said:
"As mobility accelerates towards an electrified future, we must fully understand the requirements and challenges of electrification in all forms of mobility. By partnering with The Williams Fleet, we hope to jointly develop leading mobility solutions and further enhance our electric vehicle fluid technology." ”
Castrol E-Care products are focused on electric vehicles and are forward-looking enough, which I think is why Castrol has become the official supplier of thermal management fluids for electric vehicles in Formula Electrification and Rally events such as Formula E, Extreme E, ETCR and LMdH for The Williams Team, and has been working together for up to 5 years.
summary
Electric vehicle technology is developing very fast, so it is necessary to do your homework now.
It can be seen that these black technologies on electric vehicles have sprouted, and more and more manufacturers have participated in and actually come up with technical solutions or products. But I also want to remind everyone that just like the older generation thinks that "new cars don't run high speed" is not applicable now, under the blessing of these electric vehicle black technology, we can enjoy better technology, but do not use the current maintenance vision to look at future electric vehicles.
Automotive technology is characterized by a layout that has been developed for a long time when consumers notice them. Castrol's development of lubricants and greases has been at the heart of many technological achievements on land, aviation, sea and space for more than 100 years, and castrol is now spearheading the layout with the E-Starter range for electric vehicles. Don't look at it, the original professional people are not only capable, but also get up earlier than others.