You might still be skeptical about electric cars and haven’t even thought about considering buying one, but things might change very soon. The world is going through a new electric vehicle revolution. The world is 10 years away from an electric vehicle revolution and 20 years away from a complete takeover. Internal combustion engines might make their way into the museum in the future. How bold it is to make such a claim when the total EV sales hold only about 5% of the total market?
When you think about electric cars, you automatically imagine Tesla and Elon Musk. While Tesla has been the pioneer of the sector and has single-handedly created the case for EVs, the other automobile giants are slowly entering the new generation race. Volvo has declared the company will become fully electric by 2030. Another automobile giant Volkswagen announced that 70% of its sales will be electric cars by then. General Motors will become completely electric by 2035. Ford has also declared that by 2030 they will only sell electric cars in Europe. Jaguar is much ahead; they have a plan to go fully electric by 2025.
When you combine this trend with the environmental regulations and targets by the governments around the world and the emergence of new technological breakthroughs, it is only a matter of time when the automobile market will be taken over by electric vehicles.
What are Electric Vehicles and how do they work?
Electric cars run on rechargeable batteries that are made of lithium-ion. Unlike conventional cars, electric vehicles are propelled by electric motors instead of an internal combustion engine. Induction motors, invented by Nikola Tesla in the 19th century, are the main powerhouse of an electric vehicle. The lithium-ion batteries are required to be charged by plugging into a charging point. It takes electricity from the power grid and stores the electricity in batteries.
An electric car consists of three essential inner parts – an induction motor, a battery, and an inverter. The batteries produce DC power. Before the power gets to the motor, the inverter converts the DC power into AC power. The inverter controls the AC power frequency, thus controls the motor speed. The inverter can vary the amplitude of the AC power, which means it can control the motor power. Therefore, the inverter works as a brain of an electric vehicle.
lithium-ion batteries are made of a collection of lithium-ion cells, connected in a series and parallel to generate the vehicle's power. Glycol coolant is passed through the gap between the cells to keep the battery effectively cool. This mechanism reduces the thermal hotspot and achieves temperature distribution. The cells are arranged as detachable modules. There are around 16 modules and 7000 cells in a battery pack in a standard Tesla electric car. The heated glycol is cooled down by passing through a radiator.
An induction motor has two key parts – a stator and a rotor. The rotor is a collection of conducting bars short-circuited by end rings. A stator has a three-phase AC power input. The three-phase alternating current created a rotating magnetic field. The magnetic field induces a current on the rotor to make it turn. The rotor speed is always less than the rotating magnetic field’s speed. It doesn’t have a permanent magnet or brushes. The speed of the rotor depends on the frequency of the AC power supply, so the driving wheel speed can be controlled by changing the frequency. These characteristics of an electric car make its speed control very easy and comfortable. The motor speed can range from 0-18 thousand rpm, which is significantly higher than that of an internal combustion engine car. In contrast to ICE, no speed transmission is required in an electric car. In internal combustion engines, the linear motion of the piston is converted to rotational motion. The direct rotational motion and uniform power output of an electric car make it possible to reduce many components that are used in a conventional car.
Another important part of an electric car is a drive train. The power generated by the induction motor is transferred to the drive wheels through a gearbox.
There are three types of electric vehicles in the market –
Plug-in: This electric car is purely based on electricity. It doesn’t have fossil fuel options. Tesla cars are purely electric.
Hybrid: These cars are primarily electric, but they also have a conventional fuel engine. You can run this car on fossil petrol or diesel.
Hybrid-electric: These cars are primarily conventional in nature with an IC engine, but they also have an electric battery. You can switch between fossil fuel the battery as you wish.
Why are Electric Vehicles more expensive than the regular combustion engine?
Electric vehicles are touted as environmentally friendly and their mechanism provides superior performances. Tesla is super confident in its business. Then why does it hold a tiny percentage of the market? What’s stopping people from buying it?
One of the stumbling blocks is the price. Electric cars are still more expensive than conventional internal combustion engine cars. Lithium-ion battery accounts for about 1/3rd of the total manufacturing cost of an electric vehicle. These batteries are expensive. Lithium-ion batteries require expensive raw materials such as lithium, nickel, and cobalt. This manufacturing structure pushes the price of an electric car higher than a traditional car.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of an electric vehicle?
Everything has its pros and cons. Electric vehicles also come with a few advantages and disadvantages. As mentioned before, Electric vehicles are at the moment more expensive. However, the maintenance cost is way less than conventional gas engines. Electric cars are very quiet and smooth. They also react quickly and can accelerate the speed in no time. Another advantage is that electric cars are energy efficient. They leave a very low carbon footprint.
Electric cars are still a new technology, so it has its bad side too. Electric batteries have a shorter range in comparison to traditional cars. Typically, a regular EV can cover 100 miles at full charge, while ICE cars can cover 400 miles. EVs with more range require superior battery power, and, therefore, they are more expensive. Charging and electricity also take time. It can take from 30 minutes to 12 hours. It relies on the battery power and the speed of the charging spot. Finding a charging spot at convenience can also be tricky.
How can they become more affordable?
For any technology to be adopted by the mass, it has to become affordable for the masses. Usually, the initial growth stage of new technology is slow. Take the computer for an example. Initially, computers were limited to a narrow scope. It took computers decades to become a daily necessity and available in every household. Big credit goes to Tesla for their effort in creating a case for electric cars. However, the technology is still new in comparison to the ICE cars.
To get adopted by the mass, electric vehicles will have to reach price equality. The good thing is the technology is expected to get better with time. The cost of a battery is expected to get reduced according to studies. According to a study by Bloomberg NEF, electric vehicles will become cheaper to manufacture than internal combustion engine cars by 2027. The study claims the continuous decrease in the cost of production of batteries and dedicated production lines will make it possible.
Technological Breakthrough and emission guidelines to play the part:
Electric vehicles are still few points away from becoming a popular choice. They are relatively expensive than their counterparts, they are too heavy and take too long to charge. They also have a shorter range than the ICE cars. But, technological breakthroughs can change that. Lithium-ion battery technology has advanced a lot in the last decade. This is the same technology that is used in pretty much every electronic today – from a refrigerator to a remote control. Scientists have been working rigorously to improve the technology. In 2013, the price per kilowatt-hour of a lithium-ion battery was more than $660. In 2020, the price decreased to a dramatic $137. According to the predictions, the price is expected to decrease more. When the price per kWh reaches $100, it will be considered a significant milestone. Forecasts say battery price will reach $58 per kWh by the end of this decade. This improvement will make electric vehicles cheaper than traditional fossil-powered cars, and, therefore, they will become more appealing to the mass audience.
Will Solid-State Battery be an answer?
Lithium-ion batteries have become more affordable, but their size and weight haven’t decreased yet. The other key issues – weight, range, and charging time – need to be solved too. Solid-state batteries might be an answer to that. These batteries are very hard and they are packed very tightly under pressure. Harvard researchers have designed a stable, solid-state multilayer battery that puts different materials of stabilities inside it. This design controls the lithium dendrites that form on the surface and prevents their penetration. In lithium-ion batteries, these dendrites grow like roots and impale the barriers that separate the anode and the cathode. This may cause the batteries to short or even catch fire.
Solid-state batteries come with many advantages. They have greater energy density which means an electric vehicle can go far from its current range. They are smaller and lighter than lithium-ion batteries. It is estimated that these batteries will charge up to 80% in 15 minutes, which is a great improvement from what we have currently. This battery is estimated to be charged at least 10,000 times in its lifetime. It will also increase the lifetime of a vehicle. General Motors' vision is to create batteries that will last for a million miles. Solid-state batteries have significantly less risk of catching fire due to their mechanism.
However, solid-state batteries have some issues too. Due to its solid nature, it can be subject to micro-cracks, which will break the tight arrangements of the materials inside. This will cause the battery to fail. The technology is still under review and the batteries are currently expensive. These problems can be solved with more research and time.
Future is here:
The world is moving towards green energy to curb the threat of climate change. The governments and authorities are creating strict guidelines and rules to reduce the carbon footprint. The automobile industry will have to adapt to the new regulations. Big automobile giants have already been fined for failing to meet the emission targets. European Union plans to reduce 55% carbon emission by 2030. This plan includes – gradual replacement of combustion engines with electric vehicles, reduction of emission per kilometer for passengers, achieve 24% use of renewable energy in the transportation sector, and introduce clean hydrogen for energy.
These emission targets and regulations clearly indicate an EV revolution in near future, which is not very far. Global sales of electric vehicles plunged in 2020, which saw a 43% increase despite the Covid crisis. Last year, more than half a million electric vehicles were sold in Europe. Germany, which sold 64,000 cars, was the biggest market for electric vehicles in Europe. The United Kingdom had the second-largest buyer in 2020. Norway became the first country in the world where the number of electric vehicles sold surpassed the number of conventional cars. Government subsidies have played a part in sales growth. Governments are planning to become more ruthless in decision-making, which includes a complete ban on the sales of combustion engines by 2035.
With all these upcoming changes, the electric vehicle revolution which will take over the automobile industry seems to be knocking on the door.
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