According to the research team, this tech could revolutionise the existing multi-billion dollar industries including Electric vehicles, consumer electronics, drone and other products that depend on the usage of a Lithium-Ion battery.

Indian scientists are working on next-gen battery technology to make EVs super-efficient. A joint research team from IIT Bombay and Shiv Nadar University is working on new Lithium battery cells. Researchers claim that the Lithium battery they are working on will have three times more energy density than the conventional Li-ion battery. If the claims of these scientists are valid, then it can revolutionize the electric vehicle industry.

These new battery cells are based on Lithium-Sulphur (Li-S) chemistry. Not only this, but the Li-S batteries will also be cheaper than the current Li-ion batteries. Besides, the technology developed by scientists would allow the environment-friendly production of these battery cells.

As per the reports, the production of battery cells requires the by-products of petroleum along with agro-waste elements and copolymers such as cardanol and eugenol as cathodic materials. Cardanol is nothing but simply the by-product of cashew nut processing, whereas eugenol is the clove oil.

So basically this technology uses bio-molecules in the form of cathodes for Li-S battery cells. Though this might be a new concept, it promises some great results. If your energy density has increased by three times then it simply means more range for your electric cars.

Bimlesh Lochab, Associate Professor at Shiv Nadar University told PTI, “The capability of three times more energy density, coupled with being a significantly safer technology, holds the promise of accelerating the adoption of clean, battery-led energy across multiple domains.”

Professor Lochab explained by giving an example of a car. He said a car with a 400 km range can travel 1600 km on a single charge with this battery technology.

Cars like Tesla depend on Lithium-Ion battery technology so for the future of electrification this could be an important invention.

The new battery technology synthesises a bio-based molecule, capable of commercial-scale production. The research includes a new type of cathode for Li-S batteries, which can help push the promising battery technology to higher performance levels.

 

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In fight against air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, the electrification of the transport sector is an important goal because widespread electrification would greatly improve the quality of the air we breathe. And in fact, switching to electric vehicles has also been a core target of the Ministry of Forests and Environment since 2015, in doing that Nepal has a comparative advantage in terms of production of its own hydroelectricity, a local energy resource, with a huge potential to replace imported fossil fuel in upcoming days resulting the energy security of country.

Also, EVs are the cleaner, greener, and quieter alternative money saving and cheaper in the long run and is dependent on domestic energy sources of Nepal.

Earlier days of EVs

Earlier policies and budgets tried to encourage the use of EVs with favourable tax policy, even though the lack of charging stations remained a major concern issues. While Introduction of policies favourable to battery powered vehicles have at least replace this incremental rate by EVs. Reduction in purchase and operation costs, charging duration could have created a huge acceptability of electric vehicles in Kathmandu Valley.

Similarly, construction of charging infrastructure around the valley could provide solution to worries of the general public while purchasing an EV. And a lot of investments were already done domestically as well as from FDIs to build these high power charging stations for long route EV travelling. We already have a history of electric public transportation like trolley bus and safa Tempo which are still in use till date inside Kathmandu valley in various major routes. But this is just in the past times before the new tax policy.

Current Days of EVs in Nepal

However the future of Electronic Vehicle now in Nepal seems to have unclear future, with the new tax policy introduced this fiscal year. The Nepal government’s decision in late May to hike taxes on electric vehicles is one of the most criticized decisions because the 2020-21 budget raised customs duty on electric vehicles to 40 percent, introduced excise duty ranging from 30 to 80 percent and kept VAT unchanged at 13 percent.

Previously, EVs only paid up to 10 percent customs and 13 percent VAT. Electric vehicles of peak power 50-100kW will now have to pay 40% excise, 50% if it is 100-150kW. The excise goes up to 60% for battery cars with peak power of 150-200kW. Because the EVs which would have cost 55 lakh before the new budget will now cost more than 1 crore 30 lakhs, this is an absurd situation for EV market in Nepal.

All the addition of tax on EVs now

Here is the example of tax calculation after the Budget 2020/021. Let us assume the price of an EV is Rs 55,00,000. Now, according to the new budget, the price will be subjected to 40% customs duty. After adding customs duty i.e. Rs 22, 00,000 new price will be = Rs 77,00,000. Now let’s assume the EV has a power ranging between (100-150Kw), then add the excise duty of 50% (Electric cars with peak power ranging between 50-100kW will bear an excise duty of 40%, 50% if it’s between 100-150kW, and 60% for 150-200kW).

The new price will be = Rs 1,15,50,000 (Rs 77,00,000 + 50% Excise duty i.e. Rs 38, 50,000).

Now the VAT is also there to be added  that is 13% VAT = Rs 1,30,51,500 (Rs 1,15,50,000 + 13% VAT i.e. Rs 15,01,500).

And here at the end comes 5% road toll which will depend upon every local level government policy  = Rs 1,37,04,075 (Rs 1,30,51,500 + 5% road toll i.e. Rs 6,52,575). 

The final price will be Rs 1,37,04,075 (excluding 20% dealer margin).

Result in reverse growth of Environment friendly, EVs in Nepal

Instead of having electronic vehicle friendly budget our country’s tax policy is actually going against the global trend. Electric vehicles are being imported by Renault, Mahindra, Kia, Hyundai, MG, Peugeot, Audi and BYD. Other importers which were also planning to add electric cars to their showrooms will now cancel their orders. These have made the EVs business intangible and risky for the dealers. As well as an impractical decision the consumers who earlier had made their mind to own electric vehicle in near future.

 

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The battery production line looks like a single, neat line at first sight. But it has three main branches, and the finished batteries come off it roughly in the middle. The battery modules are being put together into the assembly of four in one branch. In another branch, there is the fully equipped case that houses the battery modules and is perfectly sealed at the end of the assembly process to protect the battery from external influences. The battery’s electronics are put together in the third, smaller branch.

The battery module is located beneath the car floor in front of the rear axle.

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The production line lithium-ion batteries

When assembling the four battery modules, ŠKODA uses modules from an external supplier that are actually finished small battery cells. These modules proceed along the first part of the line in two parallel streams: for the left and right parts of the battery separately. Each module comes from the supplier charged to roughly 20% capacity, so safety precautions are necessary right from the start of the production process. The first step is to fit the module with special heat-conducting foil that helps improve the cooling of the entire battery set. A cooler is inserted between the modules – once connected, coolant liquid flows through the cooler.

Other parts of the line handle the battery’s low-voltage electronics. The entire control module, known as the e-box, with its own control unit, is made on the part of the line with enhanced protection against any excess voltage from static. That is why everyone in the workplace wears special clothing. The individual components on the line are also specially protected.

A single piece of aluminium

While the battery modules and e-boxes are being assembled, in another part the aluminium can be forming the body of the battery is prepared. Most of the handling work here is done by robots, but at some stations, they have a manual backup in case the robot is unable to do the job for some reason.

Assembled batteries head off for rigorous testing.

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The massive aluminium case also comes from a supplier. Here on the line, it is fitted with all the necessary components such as various connectors, seals, stops and screw bushes, but also the external heat shield that passes through the centre of the case. This shield protects the entire battery from the heat from the exhaust that runs beneath it.

When the case is fully assembled, it is the turn of a perhaps unexpected assistant to do its bit: a robot that uses a vacuum cleaner to make sure that the case is free from any impurities that might cause problems during operation. After being vacuumed, the case is ready for what is known as the “marriage”. While in automobile manufacture this has traditionally meant the phase when the body is joined together with the chassis and engine, here it means putting the assembled battery modules into the case, which is done by a robot. Another robot takes care of the fairly complicated process of screwing bath and module together. The seal lies on a mount. The complexity lies in the fact that the screw and the mount are automatically connected first.

At the start of assembly battery modules are paired up; the complete battery blocks are made from multiples of these pairs.

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Once the case and modules have been put together, other components are fitted, primarily the cooling circuit. The installation of the low-voltage cabling is completed and the case is given filler material and support braces. One smart solution is applied when these are screwed together on the line.

Another control practice might seem unexpected as well: after all the connectors have been attached inside the battery, the employee at the next station uses a felt-tip pen to make a dot on the place of the given connection to show that he performed a second visual check of the connection. “This requirement forces the employee to actually look at the connection,” Mašek says. All that’s left to do after that is to connect the module to the control unit, and the battery is ready to be sealed. The lid on the case is secured with a double seal: rubber and special glue. The lid is screwed on by a robot.

Testing of Battery Assembly

Assembly is followed by a series of tests. The first is the seal test, with separate checks of the tightness of the cooling circuit and the battery as a whole. From time to time, a different-looking unit appears among the tested batteries. This is a specimen unit that verifies that the seal testing apparatus is working properly. Special jets can simulate seal defects, which adds another dimension to the check of testing apparatus’s functionality.

Battery production is clean and almost noiseless, with little manual work involved. 

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When the battery has passed the seal test, it can proceed to one of the thirteen test states for a series of electric tests. High-voltage and low-voltage (communication) parts are checked, and tests are done to make sure the insulation works properly. Once the battery has been through all the tests, it is charged to around 37% capacity. Then it is given a warning label, its own type label for identification purposes (this label is also printed and affixed automatically under the watchful eye of a camera) and a few other details. Then the finished battery is dispatched to the warehouse.

Source: ŠKODA

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