E-Mobility Engineering 019 | In conversation: Stephen Lambert l WAE EVR l Battery case materials focus l Quality control insight l Clipper Automotive Clipper Cab digest l Optimising battery chemistries insight l Powertrain testing focus

TheGrid 11 May/June 2023 | E-Mobility Engineering Technical consultants Ryan Maughan is an award-winning engineer and business leader with more than 20 years’ experience in the High-Performance, Heavy-Duty and Off-Highway Automotive markets. Prominent in the development of Power Electronics, Electric Motors and Drives (PEMD) for these demanding applications, he has successfully founded, scaled and exited three businesses in the electric vehicle space. He is currently CEO of eTech49 Limited, an advisory business specialising in disruptive hardware technology in PEMD. In addition, he is Chairman of EV North, an industry group representing the booming EV industry in the north of England, a board member of the North East LEP and an adviser to a number of corporations. Danson Joseph has had a varied career in the electrical power industry, having worked in areas ranging from systems engineering of photovoltaic powerplants to developing the battery packs for Jaguar Land Rover’s I-Pace SUV. With a PhD in electrical machines from the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa, Danson has focused on developing battery systems for automotive use. After completing the I-Pace project he formed Danecca, a battery development company with a focus on prototyping and small-scale production work, as well as testing and verifying cells and packs destined for mass production. Dr Nabeel Shirazee graduated from Leicester University in 1990, where he studied electrical and electronic engineering. An MSc in magnetic engineering followed at Cardiff University, where he continued his studies, earning a PhD and developing a permanent magnetic lifting system that has been patented by the university. His interest in magnetics led to a patented magnetic levitation system that was awarded the World’s No 1 Invention prize at INPEX in the USA. In 1999, he founded Electronica, a magnetics research and design consultancy. Since then, he has been involved in various projects, including the design of an actuator motor for a British aerospace company. He has also licensed the levitation technology in France. Ryan Maughan Danson Joseph Automation transforms OBCs P remo has announced a fully automated process for manufacturing new transformers for OBCs (writes Nick Flaherty). OBCs are typically integrated into an EV’s powertrain and require transformers to convert the AC power from external charging stations or home charging units into the DC power needed to charge the vehicle’s battery. Flyback transformers are needed for the power supply control unit to provide different low voltages. Premo’s FLYT-004 and FLYT-005 transformers are suitable for onboard AC-DC battery chargers and have a quasi-resonant flyback mode with a switching frequency range of 50- 300 kHz and a maximum duty cycle of 85%. They also provide multiple the possibility of positive or negative output voltages. The isolation between primary and secondary windings is a critical feature, so the transformers have been designed to provide sufficient isolation to meet safety requirements, with isolation of up to 3 kV between windings. CHARGING Premo’s surface mount flyback transformers have a switching frequency range of 50- 300 kHz and a maximum duty cycle of 85% Dr Nabeel Shirazee l i R searchers in the US have developed a solid-state lithium-air battery c ll with a potential nergy den ity of 1000 Wh/kg (writes Nick Flaherty). The capacity s potentially four times that of the current lithium-ion battery echn logy used in h avy-duty vehicles such as ai craft, t ains and submarines. Th electrolyte is a mix of polymer and ceramic materials that tak s advantage of the ceramics’ high ionic con uctivity and th high stability a d high interfacial co nection of the polymer. The electrolyte is based on Li 10 GeP 2 S 12 nanoparticles embedded in a polyethylene oxide polymer matrix. The result allows for the critical reversible reaction that enables the battery to function – lithium dioxide formation and decomposition – to occur at high rates at room temperature. It is the first demonstration of this in a lithiu -air battery. “We found that olid-state electrolyte contributes a ound 75% of the total energy density,” said Mohammad Asadi, Assistant Professor of chemical engineering at Illinois Institute of Technology. “That tells us there is a lot of room for i provement, because we believe we can minimise that thickness without compro is ng performan , which would allow us to achieve a very high energy density.” Prof Asadi said he plans to work wit industry partners to optimise the battery’s design and engineer it for manufacturing. The prototype cell i rechargeabl for 1000 cycles with a low polaris gap, and it can op rate at hi h rates. BATTERIES Lithium-air’s quadruple potential rch/April 2023 | E-Mobility Engin ering