Together with exhibiting on the Battery current this October in Michigan, Engel held an open dwelling in Austria with stakeholders in November to level out its progress in the direction of altering metallic and aluminum inside the rising software program {{of electrical}} automotive (EV) battery enclosures.
Michael Fischer, Engel’s enterprise development supervisor for electrical mobility and good panels, cites LMC Automotive’s (now GlobalData Plc’s) market forecasts to highlight the approaching acceleration for the market. The powertrain composition ratio for world light automotive product sales report from GlobalData forecasts that the market share of inside combustion engines (ICE) will drop from 65.6% in 2024 to 22.3% by 2036, with battery electrical automotive’s (BEV) share rising from 12.6% to 52.9% over that exact same time interval. For those who mix in plug-in hybrid electrical vehicles (PHEV) and full-hybrid electrical vehicles (FHEV), the potential is even larger. “What do all these — BEV, PHEV, FHEV — vehicles have in widespread?” Fischer asks, “They need to retailer electrical energy for the motors.”
As a proof of concept, Engel, in collaboration with supplies supplier SABIC and sustainable product development company Forward Engineering, developed an OEM-specific, high-voltage battery enclosure (HVBE) based on one already in manufacturing for Volkswagen’s ID.4 electrical sport utility automotive. “The aim is to ship an progressive, cost-effective, and versatile scale decision for future EV battery enclosures,” Fischer says.
The tray choices ribs and 37 metal inserts, and 5 commonplace fasteners molded proper right into a single half.
Provide: SABIC
This concept HVBE consists of a three-piece development, along with an injection molded cowl and tray affixed to a structural metallic underbody panel. The best cowl consists of three main elements in a sandwich design whereby a 1.9-mm thick layer of flame-retardant Stamax PP supplies is molded between two 0.3-mm organosheets inserted onto the A and B halves of the system, which was constructed by Christian Karl Siebenwurst GmbH & Co. KG (Dietfurt, Germany).
Run on an Engel Duo 5500 combi M on the agency’s tech center in St. Valentin, the cell makes use of an easix 6-axis robotic with a dual-sided end-of-arm-tool (EOAT) to decide on up two 50% glass-filled polypropylene (PP) organosheets and place them on each side of the system, with the Siebenwurst mildew holding the sheets in place and sustaining home between, which is then crammed by a 7.5-kg (16.5-lb) shot of UL-verified flame-retardant Stamax PP from SABIC.
Throughout the outer fringe of the finished half, there’s solely the molded Stamax, whereas the rest of the 9-kg (20-lb) half choices the sandwich development. Inside the self-discipline, the best cowl is tasked with containing any potential thermal runaway of the battery, stopping any potential fire originating inside the cells from spreading by way of the automotive. Notably, the material ought to withstand the UL 2596 thermal runaway check out. SABIC has confirmed out {{that a}} 4-mm thick sheet of flame-retardant Stamax 30YH570 can go the check out, which mixes stress, ablative drive, heat and hearth, with temperatures as a lot as 420°C and inside pressures of 250,000 kPA (36,000 psi).
Trials with the mould and course of began in August, and Engel outfitted the Duo 5500 combi M with a third injection unit for flexibility in future trials. For this course of, the machine makes use of a 190-mm (7.5″) diameter screw with an L/D ratio of 25.
Battery enclosure tray and cover on present at moldmaker Siebenwurst displaying the size of the weather. Provide: SABIC
This cowl goes over the injection molded tray, which choices ribs and molded-in fasteners for mounting connections and cargo swap to the automotive’s underbody panel or physique in white. Fischer says the basic concept for the tray was to mix as so much as potential proper right into a single molded half. To that end, the design choices 37 metal inserts and 5 commonplace fasteners that are insert overmolded into the final word half. Automation is used to load the inserts and fasteners into one different Siebenwurst system. Testing on the tray, which has a design that choices molded-in cooling circuits for the battery, has been working since April 2024, utilizing an Engel duo 4000 press.
Whereas metallic and aluminum for the time being dominate the sector, Fischer does degree out some thermoplastic encroachment inside the home. Notably, Lucid Motors’ Lucid Air BEV encompasses a one-shot insert-molded module housing, that features insert molding of a contactor plate and making use of a 20% glass-filled Lexan 3412ECR polycarbonate (PC) from SABIC. This half is molded by Plastikon Industries. Fischer and Engel maintain that thermoplastic enclosures, considerably when a lot of parts and choices are built-in by the use of molding in a single shot, current a beautiful worth place for OEMs and their suppliers. In addition to, if the carbon footprint of aluminum and thermoplastics are weighed in these parts, PA has 2.1 kg of CO2 equal for a kilogram of cloth, whereas cast aluminum is out there in at 6.8 kg of CO2.
What’s Required
The prospect is big every inside the potential quantity of parts, however as well as inside the explicit individual measurement of these parts, with Fischer saying future enclosures will measure 8 by 5 ft — an issue to mildew with the one provides. “We’re talking about shot weights that are going as a lot as 75 kg with utterly completely different, carefully crammed provides,” Fischer says. These embrace PP and polyamides (PA), full of glass fibers in ranges from 30 to 50%. Parts going as a lot as 3 sq. meters in measurement, would require clamp forces as a lot as 11,000 tons.
Siebenwurst constructed the molds for the battery tray (pictured) and cover. Provide: Siebenwurst
Together with its validation and evaluation work with SABIC and Forward Engineering, Engel will be collaborating with Envalior on battery housing concepts, concentrating on PA constructions, along with completely or partially built-in organosheets or UD tapes, metal inserts for connections and built-in ribs for affect resistance.
Together with wonderful mechanical properties, a lot of these provides and parts would possibly wish to provide electromagnetic shielding (EMS) and flame-retardant (FR) capabilities. For the trays the preserve the battery cells, long-glass fiber PP with FR V0 rating will be the underside provides, with UD tapes, rods and organosheets utilized as wished. The module housing and administration subject would use glass-filled PC and short-glass-fiber-filled PA and PP. Proper right here too, the weather need FR V0 rating and EMS. For the cover and the tray, postmold habits, along with potential warpage, ought to be thought-about. Fischer says together with serving to satisfy the FR requirements, the organosheets moreover alleviate potential warpage.
Plasticizing Concepts and Course of Requirements
Fischer says a traditional 3-zone screw for provides strengthened with transient glass fibers could also be utilized, whereas for prolonged glass fiber provides (like SABIC’s Stamax), screws with geometries notably designed for sustaining fiber dimension ought for use. He gives that two injection gadgets for these parts can current further flexibility and, given the shot volumes that should be prepared, preserve screw diameters in extra typical ranges.
As one different strategy of sustaining longer fibers, Fischer says a two-stage course of — the place glass fibers are added into the soften in a second screw after a serious screw has prepared the provides — is an risk. Engel’s private inside assessments of such a 2-stage course of confirmed essential will enhance in fiber dimension as compared with single-stage plasticization, with fiber lengths measured after the nozzle. Fischer notes that this two-stage concept moreover opens the door for the introduction or regrind and recycled supplies into these parts. By the use of injection stress, forces equal to or larger than roughly 22,000 psi are need with a metering stroke of 1.5 to 2D, or one-and-a-half-to-two-times the screw diameter. Use of a sequentially valve-gated scorching runner system, with cascading injection all through a lot of gates, will be immediate.
“Based mostly totally on testing, Engel stays open supplies good,” Fischer says. “I personally think about it ought to be cost-effective and fulfill the entire needs from the OEM. We’re preparing for all associated provides. Fully completely different provides might have utterly completely different properties, and these will seemingly be mirrored inside the design.”
Provide: Engel