Author 丨 Wang Xiaoxi
Responsible editor 丨 Cui Liwen
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The 800V platform architecture has advantages, the question is when the technology will become popular.
European and American car companies are realizing the advantages of the 800V platform architecture. According to foreign media OUTLETS, an article by Peter Siegel points out that automakers and suppliers (excluding Chinese car companies by course) agree that the 800V platform architecture of fast charging has advantages.
The question, though, is when will the technology become widespread.
While electric vehicles currently account for only about a tenth of the global market, automakers and suppliers are preparing for the next generation of components, including solid-state batteries and electric drive systems.
Now, the 800V electrical system is expected to cut charging time in half, drastically reduce battery size and cost, and increase power transmission system efficiency.
So far, only a handful of new cars on the market use 800V platform systems, most of which are standard 400V technology.
These models include: Porsche Taycan, Audi e-tron GT, Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6. The Lucid Air luxury sedan uses a 900V architecture, but experts say it's technically an 800V system.
It should be noted here that in 2021, domestic car companies have already set off a round of 800V platform models. BYD, Geely, Jihu, Hyundai, GAC, Xiaopeng, etc. have successively released models equipped with the 800V platform, of which Extreme Krypton Automobile, Xiaopeng, BYD, etc. have set the mass production of 800V platform models in 2022. 2022 can be said to be "800V first year".
Some parts suppliers said that by around 2030, 800V platform architecture will become the dominant technology, especially with the emergence of more and more dedicated pure electric platforms such as Hyundai E-GMP and Volkswagen Group PPE (later unified into SSP platforms).
"By 2025, most of the applications that will enter the market will be 800V," said Dirk Kesselgruber, president of the electric drivetrain division at GKN, one of several Tier1s that have adopted the technology.
GKN is offering customers 800V components, such as the electric bridge e-axles, and plans to start mass production in 2025, "We think it will go mainstream and Hyundai has proven it competitive in terms of price." And other suppliers responded to his enthusiasm.
"The 800V is the logical next step in bev's development," Alexander Reich, head of the innovative power electronics division at Vitesco Technologies, told the media.
Wesperant technology has been awarded a large contract for 800V components, including EMR4 inverters for Hyundai's E-GMP platform, inverters for Major North American automaker Ford, and electric motors for Electric Vehicle Manufacturers in China.
In January 2022, Vincent Announced that it had signed an agreement with Ford Motor (not named at the time) to supply 800V SiC inverters from 2025. The deal is worth €1 billion ($1.08 billion).
Thomas Stierle, Head of the Electrification Technologies business unit at Wechat, said: "The latest order clearly proves this, and the electrification of automotive drive systems is growing faster than ever. ”
BorgWarner has also won multiple 800V orders, including an order for an integrated electric drive module for an unnamed Chinese luxury brand.
Harry Husted, BorgWarner's Chief Technology Officer, said via email: "The 800V industry is growing faster than expected a few years ago, and we feel a lot of interest from our customers. ”
01
Why change?
What are the advantages of an 800V system compared to an existing 400V platform system?
Reich, an expert at Weftypton, says there are many advantages, starting with the fact that they can provide the same amount of equal power at a lower current, "by doubling the voltage and having the same current, it is possible to provide twice as much energy input into the vehicle." "And, the main benefit is that the charging time of the same size battery is about 50 percent faster."
If the charging time is fast enough, "electric cars don't need a range of 1,000 kilometers." As a result, power batteries can be made smaller and the overall weight is reduced, thereby increasing efficiency.
At the same time, due to higher voltages and less current, cables and wires can be made smaller and lighter, reducing the consumption of expensive and bulky copper.
And because less energy is lost, it means better range and better motion performance, and there's no need for a more complex thermal management system to ensure the battery works at optimal temperatures.
When paired with emerging SiC chips, the 800V platform system can improve powertrain efficiency by at least 5 percent.
Some suppliers said that because the new silicon carbide SiC chip uses less pure silicon, it will reduce costs and provide more chips for the automotive industry. After all, other industries tend to use all-silicon chips, competing with automakers for fab capacity.
GKN's Kesselgruber said: "Putting everything together, 800V is really important. "However, for most existing charging stations based on 400V systems, models with 800V architecture need 800V-based charging facilities to take full advantage of them.
"Most of the existing DC fast charging infrastructure is for 400V cars," says BorgWarner's Hustle, "and to achieve faster charging at 800V, the latest generation of high-voltage, high-power DC fast chargers will be required." ”
But to date, the public charging network of European highways has been limited. "Refueling has to be as fast as refueling at a gas station," Husted says, "and that's what an 800V charge can do." ”
Europe is witnessing the rise of such networks. For example, Ionity is a company backed by the BMW, Daimler, Ford, Hyundai and Volkswagen groups, with multiple 800V, 350kW highway charging stations. Charging on a 350kW charging pile for 5 to 7 minutes can range 100 kilometers, which is similar to the time of drinking a cup of coffee.
Otmar Scharrer, senior vice president of electrified powertrain technologies at ZF, noted that "this is really a game changer, and it's going to push people to embrace electric vehicles." ”
▲ The 800V platform of some car companies
According to a recent Porsche report, adding 250 miles of range to a typical 50-kilowatt, 400V charging station would require about 80 minutes of charging.
At 100 kW, down to 40 min. Porsche says this time could be reduced to 30 minutes if the charging plug could be cooled (adding cost, weight and complexity of the system).
When charging at 800V, the charging time will drop to about 15 minutes. Therefore, "in order to shorten the charging time, it is inevitable to switch to a higher voltage." Considering the payment time, "so the goal of 'charging like fueling' is already within reach." ”
Porsche's "brother" Audi said that the A6 Avant e-tron concept car is based on the same PPE architecture as the Taycan, and can travel about 186 miles in just 10 minutes at the 800V fast charging station.
02
Smaller battery
We can imagine that if the industry popularizes the adoption of 800V systems, there will no longer be a need for larger batteries to eliminate "range anxiety", does this mean that automakers can choose to use smaller battery packs?
ZF's Scharrer said that since the cost of electric vehicles is still not comparable to that of fuel vehicles, smaller batteries may be a better option from a philosophical and business perspective. He said it made "no sense" to equip mainstream compact cars like the hyundai Ioiq 5 with very large batteries.
In Scharrer's view, the ideal battery capacity for such a vehicle is 55kWh, which is consistent with the smaller 58kWh option offered by Hyundai, which reduces the charging time of 5 to 80% to 10 minutes.
The combination of 800V components in vehicles and charging facilities, along with improved chips, can achieve this. "It's quite a challenge, but it's already being tested in the lab."
"We have to ask ourselves if it makes sense to use the vast amounts of rare materials we've dug out of Earth, such as lithium or cobalt, that weigh heavily and cost a lot just to make one or two long trips a quarter (for car owners)," Scharrer said.
It's also worth asking why almost all electric vehicles are still based on 400V systems, including those of market leaders Tesla and Volkswagen. Scharrer and other (European) experts believe that the answer lies in part in convenience and convention.
Typical European houses use 380V three-phase AC, so charging infrastructure was already in place when automakers began to introduce plug-in hybrid models and pure electric mobility.
The first wave of electric vehicles was built on components developed for plug-in hybrid models, which were based on 400V. At the same time, because of the new energy wave led by China, European car companies and suppliers have not reacted at all.
The Audi e-tron GT is one of the few new cars to use the 800V system, but GKN's Kesselgruber sees Porsche as a pioneer in the 800V system, focusing on performance rather than practicality, "Porsche allows itself to rethink what we've inherited from the past: Is it really optimal, or can we design from scratch?" "That's the beauty of being a high-performance automaker." ”
Suppliers are optimistic that it is only a matter of time before more 800V pure electric vehicles are on the market. The 800V has few technical challenges, but requires development and validation of components. Cost is the problem, but the cost benefits of scale, the prospect of smaller batteries and less copper use will be the cost benefits.
Volvo, Polestar Polestar, Stellantis and General Motors have all said future models will use 800V technology. The Volkswagen Group is planning to launch a range of vehicles on the PPE platform, including the new Macan and the station wagon based on the new A6 Avant e-tron concept.
European and American car companies are planning, while domestic automakers have announced that they will switch to 800V architectures, including Xiaopeng, Nio, Ideal Automobile and BYD, as well as Geely's Lotus, which has just unveiled the upcoming Eletre SUV.
03
Perfect match: SiC inverter
In fact, in addition to 800V technology, its compatible SiC inverter is also a key technology to define the next generation of automotive applications.
The inverter is a key part of the electric drive system. In short, its role is to convert the direct current (DC) provided by the power battery into alternating current (AC) for the vehicle's traction motor, then to direct current to enable regenerative braking, and finally to control the motor speed when the throttle is pressed.
It can be said that cars without inverters are "difficult to walk". It is not surprising, then, that inverters play such an important role that innovations around inverter technology occupy a prominent place on the agenda of many stakeholders. Therefore, mastering the next generation of inverter technology will be a very profitable business.
Compatible with 800V inverter applications, an example is the modern Ioniq 5 mentioned earlier. Hyundai announced in December 2020 that it would transition to an 800V-compatible modular architecture for the upcoming EV series, with 23 models released by 2025.
The Ioniq 5 is the first in the series, and a key selling point is the charging speed. With 200kW ultra-fast charging technology, the Ioniq 5 can go from 10% to 80% in less than 18 minutes, adding about 200 miles of range. This potential has led many players to scramble to produce more powerful inverters.
Just in March, the McLaren Applied app first demonstrated its upcoming 800V inverter. McLaren Apps claims that its 5th-generation inverter platform is "moving towards mass production" and will offer "best-in-class efficiency and power density," thanks to accelerated development the company strives to achieve through Formula One competitions.
At the same time, the use of SiC also allows for "faster, more efficient and lighter powertrains to be used.".
By utilizing SiC silicon carbide, McLaren's inverters can switch power more efficiently than traditional inverters while generating less heat, allowing customers to use smaller cooling systems and reduce weight and costs through expansion. Battery size can also be reduced by the same logic.
"Across the industry, we're seeing rapid advances in technology," said Nick Fry, non-executive chairman of McLaren Applications, "and if OEMs want to stay competitive and offer vehicles with higher range, faster charging times and better acceleration, they have to transition to an 800V SiC architecture." ”
In fact, McLaren isn't the only player to see the huge potential of the 800V SiC inverter. For example, NIO announced in June 2021 that the C prototype (batch prototype hard tooling) of the second-generation electric drive system made of SiC for the ET7 model has been rolled off the production line.
The speed of the market has sparked interest in solutions that shorten inverter development time. For example, at a recent Mobex webinar, Renesas detailed how it provides system-level functional safety support to help its customers reduce development time while producing inverter products.
With the theme of reducing development time, Drive System Design (DSD, a UK company) also believes it offers useful solutions for this growing segment.
It developed what it calls an "Open Platform Inverter" (OPI), a "highly customizable inverter hardware paired with flexible, modular, and easy-to-configure plug-and-play software."
As for the entire inverter market, the consensus in the industry is that the shift to SiC inverters is coming quickly. Improving charging and thermal efficiency while reducing weight and cost, as well as the potential to increase power, means it offers the Tier1 a range of attractive advantages.
Silicon carbide technology is expected to accelerate the transition from supercar models such as the Taycan to mass-market models.
Note: This article is partially compiled from AUTONEWS.
Wang Xiaoxi
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