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The Paris Climate Agreement was signed in 2016 and aims to usher in a carbon neutral society by 2050. Greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles play an important role in achieving the overall goals of the agreement.

Image source: Leonard Hugo/shutterstock.com

At present, the carbon dioxide emitted by cars accounts for 12% of the EU's total emissions. Global challenges require strict guidelines for vehicle carbon dioxide emissions. From 2021, the new average target emissions for the entire EU will be reduced from 130 grams of carbon dioxide/km to 95 grams of carbon dioxide/km. 1

Major economies including the United Kingdom intend to ban all polluting vehicles by 2035, while Germany’s goal is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 95% by 2050. 3

Electric vehicles offer great hope in helping to achieve these goals because they have a much lower carbon footprint than traditional cars powered by internal combustion engines.

This kicked off the electric vehicle revolution, as more and more road users are turning to electric vehicles that comply with the government’s climate-friendly measures. Leading automakers are making significant progress in the electrification of vehicles.

The annual sales of electric vehicles have soared from a few thousand in 2010 to more than 2 million a year, and it is expected that the sales will reach 31 million by 2030. 2

However, a recent Deloitte research report stated that consumers still have concerns about battery-powered electric vehicles: the problems mainly revolve around price, mileage per charge, and charging time. 2

Electric vehicles are often equipped with expensive batteries, which means a lack of universal affordability, leading to the continued dominance of gasoline and diesel power in the global market. In addition, large batteries in electric vehicles often require longer charging times.

Performance studies have shown that electric vehicles equipped with heavy-duty batteries and high-capacity have higher energy consumption per kilometer. 4

In addition, mileage is directly proportional to battery capacity/vehicle weight (kWh/kg). Therefore, in order to obtain better driving range, today's electric cars contain large battery packs, which makes them very heavy.

A simulation study conducted at the German Aerospace Center showed that reducing the weight of an electric vehicle by 100 kilograms can increase the efficiency by about 3.6%. Therefore, in order to make up for the shortage of heavy-duty batteries, manufacturing light vehicles is an excellent alternative to improve energy efficiency. 5, 6, & 7

A survey led by the European Aluminum Association showed that the electric Volkswagen Golf made of aluminum weighs 187 kg more than steel. At the same time, because it can install a smaller battery pack, the overall cost is saved by 635 euros. 5

As the density of aluminum is three times that of steel, high-performance aluminum alloys are a good substitute for heavy-duty steel parts. However, replacing parts with aluminum requires aluminum to be 50% thicker than steel.

Since the early 1970s, aluminum has been used to make modern cars. Today, each car manufactured in Europe uses an average of 150 kilograms of aluminum, which is often used to make body-in-white, chassis, suspension and wheels.

Tesla uses a skateboard design on the extruded aluminum frame of its battery pack to enhance the robustness of its vehicle.

Affected by Tesla's aluminum extrusion-intensive skateboard design, major original equipment manufacturers including Audi, BMW, Nissan and Porsche are now switching from steel to aluminum in the design of lightweight battery housings for electric vehicles.

The lighter the weight of an electric vehicle, the shorter the braking distance, which improves passenger safety and improves handling. Aluminum has twice the energy absorption capacity of steel in a collision.

Compared with steel parts, the 50% extra thickness of aluminum parts means an increase in material rigidity, thereby increasing the overall rigidity of the vehicle.

According to the life cycle analysis of all-steel and all-aluminum electric vehicles, the carbon emissions of aluminum vehicles during their entire life cycles are 1.5 tons lower than that of steel vehicles.

Aluminum also has the advantage of not having to reduce the size of the vehicle to obtain a lightweight structure. From a safety point of view, this is critical because the interior of smaller vehicles has less living space and compression space in the event of an accident.

These advantages outline the urgency necessary to develop lightweight, robust aluminum alloys for electric vehicles. The chemical composition and uniformity of the alloy directly affect its microstructure.

The aluminum alloy with the right chemical composition must be carefully selected according to the application to ensure that it has the required properties, such as the best stiffness, formability, thermodynamic and mechanical properties.

For example, heat exchangers and battery housings must provide high thermal conductivity to maintain cool temperatures in electric vehicles.

Since 95% of aluminum is recyclable, a large amount of old car aluminum can be recycled to make new cars: this feature can significantly reduce indirect life cycle carbon dioxide emissions. Therefore, compared with steel, recycling 1 kg of aluminum can reduce 17 kg of carbon dioxide emissions during the life of the vehicle.

Considering that the sales of electric vehicles are expected to reach about 30 million by 2030, the impact on the environment will be huge. This is equivalent to reducing 70 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions from automobile production each year.

The fewer batteries needed to power lighter cars, the lower the industrial carbon footprint associated with battery manufacturing.

Leading aluminum producers such as Hydro have even begun to use renewable energy to make low-carbon aluminum for automotive applications. 8

CRM is used for instrument and method calibration, benchmark analysis and measurement, alloy homogeneity and quality assurance. 9 ARMI's CRM provides an accurate reference point for the 6000 and 7000 series, which is the most commonly used aluminum alloy in electric vehicles.

Extrusion collision management systems based on these alloys must exhibit special collision deformation behavior, that is, they must withstand extreme deformation before cracks start to form.

CRM facilitates proper benchmarking, including mechanical properties such as creep and impact toughness, the latter being a key factor in determining a certain degree of passenger safety in the event of a collision. 10

ARMI utilizes a direct cooling continuous casting process that provides excellent homogeneity to ensure the analysis of complex multi-component aluminum alloys. 11

Each sample is analyzed using two different, state-of-the-art analysis techniques, such as colorimetry, fluorescence, X-ray fluorescence, and optical emission spectroscopy.

The result value is cross-referenced with the result of the external laboratory. This absolute verification framework guarantees reliable results while ensuring consumer safety.

This information is derived from materials provided by LGC Limited and has been reviewed and adapted.

For more information on this source, please visit LGC Co., Ltd.

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