Car manufacturer Volvo has teamed up with the Imperial College in London in an attempt to solve one of the biggest problems currently facing electric cars: the size and weight of their batteries. Though it’s still a ways off, one potential solution could see future Volvos with batteries actual built into the body panels.
The new technology consists of a composite blend of carbon fibres and polymer resin, which is able to both store and charge energy. And according to Volvo it can do this faster than the current generation of electric car batteries. The material is also very flexible so that it can be molded into a variety of shapes, but strong enough that it can actually be used to serve as the vehicle’s body. According to Volvo, replacing steel panels with the new material could reduce vehicle weight by up to 15 percent.
“Our role is to contribute expertise on how this technology can be integrated in the future and to input ideas about the advantages and disadvantages in terms of cost and user-friendliness,” Per-Ivar Sellergren, development engineer at the Volvo Cars Materials Centre, said. The project will begin experimenting by turning a spare wheel recess into a composite battery. “This is a relatively large structure that is easy to replace. Not sufficiently large to power the entire car, but enough to switch the engine off and on when the car is at a standstill, for instance at traffic lights.”
Research is expected to continue for the next three years and is also being funded in part by the European Union.
Via GOOD.
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