The Amped EV Podcast – Détails, épisodes et analyse

The complexities of EV battery technology are getting more and more... well... complex. But, while attributes like range, longevity, durability and chemistry tend to get much of the limelight, there's one aspect of EV battery R&D that sits in the background without getting the fanfare it rightly deserves: Testing.

"As the battery is becoming more and more important as the propulsion energy storage system, there's a lot of testing and a lot of validation that needs to be done," says Don Wright, Unico vice president of engineering. "Those tests are very demanding, and as the battery packs start to change and we're getting into higher voltages and higher powers, the test equipment that goes along with it needs to change as well. This is where we're starting to see the transition to much higher power systems and higher voltages for our test equipment; we even have battery pack test systems that go up to 2,000-3,000 volts for very large applications."

On this episode of The Amped EV Podcast, Wright highlights the importance of adapting test equipment to accommodate emerging trends, expectations and new business possibilities regarding the future of battery-swapping technology, and what we know about the integration of solid-state batteries in EVs. 

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Imagine the difference an additional 40% payload per trip could make to a refuse fleet. That's what Parker Meeks, CEO of Hyzon, is hoping to give haulers in the North American market looking to move away from diesel via Hyzon's hydrogen fuel cell-powered electric refuse trucks, which are now being tested in the U.S. in partnership with New Way, a refuse truck body manufacturer, and Recology, a San Fransisco-based hauler.

"While [all-electric refuse trucks] can do the work on a micro level going job to job house to house, the weight of the batteries creates a situation where most battery trucks can only do about 40-50% of a day's work, because there's a significant weight penalty that's on the truck because of how heavy those batteries are," Meeks says. "So, what we're seeing in most battery-electric trucks is up to a 40% payload penalty, meaning they can carry only 6-7 tons of trash. That's a big problem, because to accomplish the same refuse collection in a single day, you're either making 40% more trips or you're buying 25-40% more trucks. That is the fundamental reason why refuse fleets are so excited to try our truck because we believe we have a vehicle that is the only viable zero-emission refuge collection vehicle on the market today." 

In this episode of The Amped EV Podcast, Meeks breaks down how the performance of Hyzon's hydrogen fuel cell-powered electric refuse vehicle compares to all-electric or trucks with internal combustion engines, how Hyzon is addressing common hydrogen-related challenges like fueling and infrastructure, and how Hyzon has adapted what it learned from running this truck in Australia for the North American market. 

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Collisions happen, and even when no one is hurt, they're a pain. Working with insurance, getting your car worked on, potentially being without a car for a while... none of it is fun. With an EV, this entire process can be even more problematic.

"I think [drivers] need to know that if they're involved in an accident in their EV, they need to have a whole different set of expectations around what's going to go on as it relates to repairing that vehicle and bringing it back to pre-loss condition," says Ryan Mandell, the director of claims performance at Mitchell. "We say all the time that these vehicles are not simply just an electrified version of the internal combustion engine vehicle. These are really something that are wholly different because of the complete re-engineering of all the propulsion systems and the way that power is managed, and that very significantly changes the requirements for collision repair. And we can't simply just use the same kind of labor calculations to determine the number of days it's going to take to repair."

On this episode of The Amped EV Podcast, Mandell walks us through some of the latest data surrounding EV collision work, the lack of available data and standardized repair formulas for EVs, and how the economics of EVs affect repair costs.

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If we're talking about electric vehicles, I'll give it about five minutes before we hit the ol' "range" topic. Typically, the conversation swings into range anxiety territory, and this makes talking about easy ways to extend the driver's range so much fun. Instead of focusing on "range anxiety," we can shift our focus to "range serenity."

To this end, many drivers may be surprised at the effect their choice of tires has on their maximum expected range. The good news is that tire manufacturers have been focusing on low-rolling-resistance tires – which naturally enhance a vehicle's range – for decades now.

"I did a study and I compared roughly 50 tires on the same vehicle, a very popular electric vehicle. We saw a difference in range from the best tire to the worst tire of about 14%," says Russell Shepherd, technical communications director at Michelin. "Typically, in particular with Michelin, the best range you're going to get is the tire that was originally on the vehicle. But going from there, there are offers outside of the OE fitment that can provide different balances of performances, differences in terms of longevity, differences in terms of maybe you've got a summer fitment and you want to go to an all-season or winter fitment, and those choices can impact your range because of the tires."

On this episode of The Amped EV Podcast, Shepherd gets into the nitty-gritty on how much a driver's tire choice affects an EV's range, what kind of mileage drivers can expect out of EV tires, and the different high-tech ways that tire manufacturers employ to dampen road noise in the cabin.

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EV manufacturers depend on a variety of resources to maximize the range, performance and charging capabilities of an all-electric powertrain. Among these is tungsten, a rare metal that, even in tiny doses, is essential to meet the expectations of today's electric vehicle.

"In relation to EVs, you use [tungsten] in the looms. Tungsten gas is pumped into every semiconductor and you have about 2,000 semiconductors in each EV," says Lewis Black, president and CEO of Almonty Industries, a global mining company focused on tungsten mining. "In Korea, which is now at the forefront of batteries for the latest generation of batteries, you use it on the anodes and the cathodes. You use a nano-size fraction of tungsten so you can charge the battery much quicker and it doesn't combust, which, of course, is one of those things that obviously many EV owners are concerned about. So it has an increasing role within EVs as well as many other technology centers.

On this episode of The Amped EV Podcast, Black explains why EV manufacturers depend on tungsten and other resources, where manufacturers source their tungsten, and where he sees the demand curve heading for this metal.

The Buzz: www.thebuzzevnews.com

The words "tires" and "sustainable" aren't typically muttered in the same breath, but this reputation is slowly shifting for the better. New materials and recycling processes being implemented by many tire manufacturers are helping to make a tire's life more environmentally friendly, but Champtires, a seller of used tires, says we can do better, as the company says many tires with decent tread remaining are still ending up in landfills.

"Anyone who is making purchase decisions with an environmentally conscious mindset should really consider used tires because high-quality used tires with 90%, 80% of the tire's tread life left is a great way to prevent that tire from ending up in a landfill," says Shilo Rea, chief marketing officer for Champtires. "So you're reusing a product that has a lot of use left in it."

On this episode of The Amped EV Podcast, Rea explains why EV drivers might want to look into used tires, the company's used tire inspection process and how used tires can be a safe option for drivers.

The Buzz: www.thebuzzevnews.com

Car dealers know that being pro-sustainability is good for business, but increasing sustainability efforts in the showroom doesn't have to be just about what powertrain you're selling. Instead of pushing EV sales, some dealers have found success with their sustainable-conscious clientele by promising to offset the carbon emissions offset by the vehicle being sold – no matter what energy source the vehicle uses to move.

"Our partners in automotive do the drive carbon neutral program. So essentially, what we're looking to do is obviously offset carbon emissions, and that's by planting 75 trees per vehicle that they sell, or for enrollment that they get in the program," says Matt Kallstrom, founder and CEO of the Carbon Offset Company. "Why 75 trees? When you take the averages of how far someone drives in a year, how many years someone owns their vehicle, and the average miles per gallon that a vehicle has, that completely offsets the entire ownership of the vehicle. So in a sense, it's like the dealer's cars aren't even hitting the road from an emission standpoint."

On this episode of The Amped EV Podcast, Kallstrom explains how carbon offsetting works, why he believes car dealers are the perfect partners to help plant trees and how his mission connects with EV drivers.

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Autel Energy: www.autelenergy.com

Like most ICE vehicle components out there, EV components – everything from batteries to inverters – have a shelf life. When the end of life arrives, in some cases the best thing to do might be to recycle that component down to its raw materials. However, many of these EV components that are failing or degrading over time can be sustainably remanufactured to either extend their life or give them an entirely new life.

TerrePower, a division of BBB Industries, takes this approach, with the goal of keeping EVs on the road as long as possible by taking a used EV part and sustainably manufacturing it for a new life, thereby avoiding recycling and disposal.

"When you think of sustainable manufacturing – we'll use an EV battery for example – your goal is to use as much of that part as possible. So if you look at a battery, you've got the battery pack. Within that pack are modules, and within those modules are cells. If a cell has an issue, we can look at the cell level and identify what that component failure is, fix it, we identify that issue," says Stephen Albert, director of business development and global EV product strategy for TerrePower at BBB Industries. "From there, we can increase the performance for the module that goes back into the pack that goes into the vehicle."

On this episode of The Amped EV Podcast, Albert helps us understand the perks of sustainable manufacturing, and explains how the process can bring a failing EV battery back into the market so it's functioning a full power again, or in some cases, functioning even better than when it was new.

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Autel Energy: www.autelenergy.com

Renting a car can be tricky for reasons you might not expect. If you don't own a car, it can be hard getting used to remembering your keys or being mindful of where you parked. Even if you do own a car, you don't own THIS car, and working all the new gizmos and gadgets can be just as challenging as navigating the open road.

UFODrive, a car rental company that began in Europe in 2018, saw these challenges and found a way to turn them into advantages in the marketplace. The key, according to the company's Chief Commercial Officer Edmund Read, was to turn to EVs. Today, the company has an established presence in Europe and is growing steadily in the U.S., and nearly exclusively rents EVs to its customers.

"What we are able to do for customers today using modern EV platforms is way beyond what you can do with a normal ICE vehicle," Read says. "We monitor people's charge level. If you go below a certain level, we will engage to make sure you're aware of that. We'll also help book you into the nearest charge point. And then my favorite one, which happens nearly every day is, somebody returns the car, they plug it back in, they close their contract, the car locks and they walk away, but an hour later they're having lunch and they think, 'Ah, I've left my wallet or my shades or my passport or my shoes in the car.' They can text us and we can pop the trunk and let them back into the car to find the bits that they need."

On this episode of The Amped EV Podcast, Read joins us to walk us through how electrification is allowing the rental industry to turn expectations on its head. We discuss the perks EVs have unlocked in the car rental industry, how partnerships with rideshare companies like Uber are driving overall EV adoption, and the most promising EV technologies coming down the pike.

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Autel Energy: www.autelenergy.com

Hearing a lot about electric school buses lately? That's no coincidence. Last year, the EPA announced the Clean School Bus Program, offering a $5 billion investment for low-emission school buses over the next five years, and the EPA says it will make another $1 billion available for clean school buses in the 2023 fiscal year. Yes, electric school buses and the infrastructure to support them are a massive investment, but school districts around the country with an appetite for electrification know there may be no better time to take the plunge.

Many of those school districts are relying on their OEM partnerships to make the transition from diesel to electric. According to Arjun Nair, manager of electric vehicle programs at Thomas Built Buses, a successful electric bus roll-out takes much more than district stakeholders being knowledgeable about just the vehicles themselves.

"For a customer to go through this transition, we definitely want to help the customer understand what they have to consider before they get along on this journey. We try to educate the customer about the product and about what are the other factors they need to be successful, then we have our resources, our experts within the company, who would help them evaluate their needs more specifically and suggest the options that they have to mitigate any of the challenges that they see," Nair says.

On this episode of The Amped EV Podcast, Nair joins us to explain more of the reasons electric buses are catching on, the advantages of electric school bus adoption, identifying the best routes for school bus electrification and why designing an electric school bus is a challenge like no other.

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Autel Energy: www.autelenergy.com