Boffins invent EV ‘power shell’ for increased range and performance. It's a power suit, but for EVs

Figure 1. Boffins invent EV ‘power shell’

The idea of a multifunctional power suit may be common in superheroes like Iron Man, but A team of researchers from the University of Central Florida (UCF) and NASA has designed a special power suit that’s giving “superpowers” not to us — but to our EVs.

Made of layered carbon composite material and nanoscale graphene sheets, the suit works as a supercapacitor-battery hybrid device, able to store and provide energy

Just like a battery, the suit gets its power through charging, as well as from the EV’s regenerative braking system. Its charge-discharge cycle life is 10 times longer than an electric car battery.[1]

Features:

The first thing the tech claims to offer is increased range.

The composite material is lightweight — less heavy than steel and even aluminium — which reduces the vehicle’s weight and thus improves its range.

The suit can feed the stored energy to the electric motor, working as a “back-up battery” itself.

The tech can extend its range by 25%, according to the researchers, meaning that a 381km-rated EV could get an extra 80 kilometres.

As a supercapacitor, the special shell can improve the electric car’s performance, providing it the extra power it needs to go from zero to 60mph in three seconds.

The lightweight nature of the structure, the materials have significant impact and bending strength, enabling it to withstand a collision. They’re also nontoxic and non-flammable, which is crucial for passenger safety in case of an accident [2]

When can we suit up our EVs?

The suit is currently at a technology readiness level five, meaning it’s been tested in a relevant environment before being moved to a real environment, which constitutes level six.

To reach a commercial environment, it would need to pass the last stage, level nine, which would require further development and testing focused on commercial applications.

While it’s difficult to put a precise date on that, I still dream of a world where my EV becomes even more of a superhero.[3]

References:

1. https://thenextweb.com/news/boffins-invent-ev-power-shell-for-increased-range-performance
2. https://statusmarkets.in/boffins-invent-ev-power-shell-for-increased-range-and-performance/
3. https://usnewsmail.com/crypto-currency/rune-rally-a-closer-look-at-thorchains-new-synthetic-assets/

Cite this article:

Sri Vasagi K (2022), Boffins invent EV ‘power shell’, Anatechmaz, pp. 88