Greentech Lead Europe: Scientists at the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) are developing a high temperature capacitor to create electronics capabilities for electric vehicles.
With electric vehicles expected to represent more than 50 percent of worldwide light duty vehicle sales by 2050, the new capacitors offer innovative ways to store energy and address one of the critical challenges faced by the industry..
The absence of suitable capacitors has been affecting the growth of the electric vehicle industry, according to experts. Current capacitors do not meet the EV requirements due to an inability to function reliably under the high temperatures created in electric vehicles.
Under its Technology Strategy Board funded project, NPL has developed a capacitor, called HITECA that can operate close to normal efficiency at over 200oC, significantly higher than any other capacitor on the market. It also offers a high energy density – the measure of how much energy it can store.
The upshot for the electrical vehicle driver could mean an increased mileage range, reduced maintenance, and an enhanced driving feel.
After exploring a series of lead-free materials, the company selected a ceramic, based on doped-BiFeO3 compound to develop the high temperature capacity.
The project has also allowed NPL to develop a range of new capabilities in metrology to assess energy and power in capacitors across a temperature range, which it will be offering as a new service.
A recent Frost & Sullivan Report shows that capacitors represent a £10bn global market in the automotive industry alone. This capacitor also has huge potential in other areas of high temperature electronics for other industries that need to work at high temperatures or are subject to overheating.
Tatiana Correia, lead scientist on the project, said: “The opportunities for electric vehicles are huge, both financially and environmentally, but they are currently being held back by a few technical issues. With this high temperature capacitor we believe we have solved an important one of those issues and will play a vital part in the move towards mass market electric vehicles.”
The capacitor was developed as part of the Technology Strategy Board Project, Advanced Capacitors for Energy Storage (ACES). Partners of the project include Queens University of Belfast, Queen Mary University, Syfer and Valeo.