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28 September 2010
The materials development project launched by Imperial College, London,
earlier this year brings together 9 European companies and institutes.
Volvo Cars is the only car manufacturer in the project.
With the help of approximately €3.4 million from the European Union (EU),
the researchers are developing a composite of carbon fibres and polymer
resin that will store and discharge large amounts of energy much quicker
than conventional batteries. In addition, the composite material does not
use chemical processes, making it quicker to recharge than conventional
batteries. The researchers say that the recharging process causes little
degradation in the composite material, whereas conventional batteries
degrade over time.
The composite material could be charged by plugging a hybrid car into a
household power supply. The project is also exploring other alternatives
for charging it, such as recycling the energy created when the car brakes.
The material is also extremely strong and pliant, which means it can be
shaped for use in building the car's body panels. According to
calculations, the car's weight could be cut by as much as 15% if steel
body panels were replaced with the new material. One of the biggest
challenges in the development of hybrids and electric cars is the size,
weight and cost of current batteries. In order to deliver sufficient capacity
using today's technology, it is necessary to fit large batteries, which
increase the car's weight.
The project will last 3 years. In the first stage of the project, the project
team will develop the composite material so that it can store more energy.
The team aims to improve the material’s mechanical properties by
growing carbon nanotubes on the surface of the carbon fibres. This should
also increase the surface area of the material, which would improve its
http://www.reinforcedplastics.com/view/12761/turning-a-cars-body-panels-into-a-battery/
A carbon fibre composite is being developed
that can store and charge more energy faster
than conventional batteries can. (Image © Volvo
Car Corporation.)
! "
Imperial College London
Volvo Cars
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websites.
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BMW counts on carbon fibre for its Megacity
electric vehicle
The Megacity Vehicle will be BMW’s first
electrically powered production car. It also
features a new vehicle architecture and
extensive use of lightweight carbon fibre
composites. BMW believes it is the only car
maker with the manufacturing experience
necessary to use carbon fibre in volume
production.
Electric cars need lightweight composites
Lightweight materials such as composites are
vital to the success of electric and hybrid
vehicles to offset the added weight of their
batteries.
Plugged-in vehicles could capture 20% of the
market by 2030
Electric vehicles – plug-in hybrids and battery
powered – will comprise nearly 20% of the global
market for light vehicles in 2030, according to a
study by automotive industry analysts at IHS
Global Insight.
Automotive composites offer lighter
solutions
The drive toward smaller, lighter, more energy-
efficient vehicles continues as consumers push
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capacity to store more energy. The most effective method for
manufacturing the composite material at an industrial level will also be
investigated.
In the final stage of the project the battery will be fitted into a car.
"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," says Per-Ivar
Sellergren, development engineer at the Volvo Cars Materials Centre.
Initially, the composite material will be used to replace the metal flooring in
the car boot (the wheel well) which holds the spare wheel. Volvo is investigating the possibility of fitting this wheel well
component into prototype cars for testing purposes.
for 'greener' – but not necessarily smaller –
vehicles, while government regulators demand
ever higher fuel economy performance and
lower carbon dioxide emissions. Richard Stewart
reports on the larger role being played by
reinforced plastics in the auto industry.
Composites on the road to the big time?
Materials and processing technologies hold the
key to the future success of composites in the
automotive market.

"This is a relatively large structure that is easy to replace," explains Sellergren. "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."

The team says replacing a metal wheel well with a composite one could enable Volvo to reduce the number of batteries needed
to power the electric motor. They believe this could lead to a 15% reduction in the car’s overall weight, which should significantly
improve the range of future hybrid cars.

The researchers believe the material, which has been patented by Imperial College, could potentially be used for the casings of
many everyday objects such as mobile phones and computers, so that they would not need a separate battery. This would make
such devices smaller, more lightweight and more portable.

The project co-ordinator, Dr Emile Greenhalgh, from the Department of Aeronautics at Imperial College London, says: “We are
really excited about the potential of this new technology. We think the car of the future could be drawing power from its roof, its
bonnet or even the door, thanks to our new composite material. Even the Sat Nav could be powered by its own casing. The
future applications for this material don’t stop there – you might have a mobile phone that is as thin as a credit card because it no
longer needs a bulky battery, or a laptop that can draw energy from its casing so it can run for a longer time without recharging.
We’re at the first stage of this project and there is a long way to go, but we think our composite material shows real promise.”

The other participants in the 3-year project are Swerea SICOMP, INASCO Hella, Chalmers, Advanced Composites Group,
Nanocyl, Bundesanstalt Fur Material forschung undprufung, ETC Battery and Fuel Cells Sweden.

Dr Emile Greenhalgh, from the Department of Aeronautics, Imperial College, explains how the composite material works and the
benefits of using this material in vehicle manufacture in the YouTube video Car of the future powered by bodywork.

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