The key to unlocking the performance and environmental potential of electromobility?
The future of the electric vehicle (EV) industry is heavily dependent on the success of efforts to improve battery longevity and reliability. To become a truly sustainable alternative to internal combustion engine vehicles, EVs must also deliver on their environmental promise throughout the entire vehicle lifecycle
While much of the focus around EV tends to be on battery recycling, EV battery repair technology will play a decisive role on this journey and represents a more environmentally friendly option. Recent advancements within this space have taken us closer to unlocking the performance and environmental value of electric vehicles. Next generation EV battery state-of-health testing allows us to restore optimal battery health by pinpointing faults at a cellular level. By replacing underperforming modules with healthy ones through remanufacturing, this can drastically improve battery range and maximise longevity.
As automakers face growing scrutiny around their environmental impact, it is critical that they understand how EV battery remanufacturing can help meet their performance and sustainability goals. In this article, we discuss what this involves and the value it brings.
The problem with recycling
In recent history, damaged or faulty EV batteries that were deemed irreparable were typically sent away to be recycled.
Due to a lack of transparency concerning EV battery health, pinpointing the exact location of faults became an insurmountable challenge. In what amounted to a major missed opportunity to get more out of the technology, battery packs were prematurely recycled, resulting in the complete loss of all residual value contained within the remaining healthy cells. This was compounded by the heavy environmental cost of recycling, a fact that receives little attention. As we see from the below graphs, the recycling process generates substantial amounts of carbon, while consuming vast quantities of water and electricity.
One option to restore performance would be to replace faulty modules with new ones but once again, this comes with a heavy ecological burden.
Although the environmental impact of hydro-recycling is preferable to producing new battery packs, it is far from negligible. Simply put, the automotive industry needs to become more judicious about its recycling activities. Taking proactive steps to yield every last bit of value from EV battery cells before turning to recycling is vital, and the use of remanufactured EV battery modules achieves this.
Addressing the root causes of premature EV battery decline
In a short space of time, previous challenges which saw countless EV batteries sent for recycling have ceased to apply. The development of Autocraft EV Solutions’ dynamic testing capability, through our REVIVE™EV battery repair and remanufacturing offer, means that we now have the capability to pinpoint the causes of sub-optimal EV battery performance on a cellular level – and at scale. As the saying goes, prevention is better than the cure, and the use of our world-leading digital twins further augments the diagnostic process by identifying outlier cells at risk of future failure. This is made possible by comparing cell performance against large quantities of data gained through years of EV battery repair to spot any deviation from the norm. As the number of data sets increases, the predictive capability of the digital twin becomes even stronger. If we can identify a problem, we stand a much greater chance of being able to fix it. Without the right testing capability, however, any intervention is likely to be imprecise and liable to end in repeat failure.
Throughout the course of a vehicle lifespan, faults will undoubtedly occur and if left unaddressed, can undermine the performance of the entire battery pack and eventually lead to failure. Since performance is determined by the level of the weakest performing cell, it makes sense that replacing underperforming or faulty modules with healthy ones can reverse the effects of cyclical aging to extend the life of the battery and halt premature decline.
Calendar aging, however, is irreversible, which makes it impossible to restore the battery to completely brand-new condition. All lithium-ion batteries start to lose performance from their first charge and discharge cycle due to the start of the chemical reaction. The goal of remanufacturing therefore is to restore the battery to the highest possible level of performance for where it is at within its lifecycle.
Depending on the BEV in question, it will take between 32,000 km and 88,000 km of usage to “break even” on the carbon emissions generated in production when compared to ICE production. A proactive approach to maintaining battery longevity ensures the vehicle remains in operation for as long as possible, yielding the greatest environmental benefit over time.
A scientific approach to fault-free repairs
The transition towards electrification is already well underway, and as the number of electric vehicles continues to rise, so will the number of faults. In order for the EV industry to truly flourish, repair infrastructure will need to account for both scale and repair precision requirements, while mitigating all potential safety hazards. These factors, and the complexities involved, highlight the need for a repeatable and fully robust repair process that ensures every condition for a fault-free repair is met.
This unique process eliminates all scope for human error through the use of Augmented Reality (AR), LiDAR technology, and PPE detection. The patented ‘no-fault-forward’ ARIA (Augmented Reality Interactive Assembly) system, developed in-house, incorporates cameras, projectors, and wireless tools to provide exceptional process control. Technicians are given clear instructions for each step of the repair process and must follow them correctly in order to progress within the sequence of activity. This combination of systems can detect even the slightest deviation from the optimal procedure; whether this is failure to wear the correct PPE or even at the level of the torque of a single screw, nothing is left to chance. Originally developed and applied within ICE remanufacturing, this no-fault forward approach has allowed the business to entirely eliminate repeat faults from its repair process, providing the benchmark for future repair efforts on an industry level.
Overcoming the obstacles to EV adoption
Through being able to pinpoint and address faults, even before they have occurred, we can tackle much of the uncertainty linked to EV ownership stemming from a lack of transparency around EV battery health and the likelihood of failure.
By virtue of the advanced test, repair and remanufacturing capability that our business can offer, EV battery health becomes more of a known quantity, making it easier to manage. Whereas out of warranty vehicles previously experienced a sharp drop in residual value, due to the perceived risk of failure, the availability of a proven, sustainable approach to repair helps to overcome this hurdle.
This is incredibly important for the EV market, particularly for used EVs, where demand for out of warranty vehicles is crucial to keeping EVs in operation for longer and maximising the potential environmental benefits. There is a compelling case for EV battery remanufacturing, and so the industry must now embrace the opportunities that it creates.
Dr Sara Ridley – Engineering and Quality Director at Autocraft EV Solutions
