A consortium of Vestaro companies dedicated to producing lighter, more cost-effective solutions for pure electric vehicles (BEVs) has developed a new generation of battery packs, the Pure Performance Battery. Based on sheet molding compound (SMC) technology using Evonik curing agents, the new overall battery system concept offers the automotive industry a safe, lightweight and cost-effective alternative to traditional relatively Heavy metal based solutions.
Vestaro was established in late 2019 to develop alternative battery solutions, starting with cost-effective glass fiber (GF) SMC cover sheets based on Evonik's high-performance epoxy curing agent Vestalite S. The advanced SMC material can reduce the weight of battery casings by nearly 10 percent compared to casings made from higher-cost materials. In addition, the material offers the performance levels of metal enclosures while enabling design freedom.
At the beginning of 2021, the successful announcement of Vestaro's new GF-SMC cover plates produced by Vestaro partner Lorenz Kunststofftechnik. Subsequently, tier one auto parts manufacturer Minth GmbH joined the Vestaro consortium. With Mins' extensive experience in aluminum solutions, the Vestaro Alliance addresses two of today's battery pack challenges: bottoming and vehicle integration.
To meet the stringent OEM requirements for sidebar and bottom shock without any leakage or failure, the consortium has come up with a novel approach that takes advantage of the design freedom of the versatile SMC material. The old underbody structure was replaced with an aluminium sandwich panel developed by Minth to improve bottoming performance, while also playing a key role in the semi-unibody vehicle concept. With this approach, the consortium was able to remove the extra side-deforming elements and free up space to carry more battery cells.
In addition, the bottom impact performance of the mezzanine floor has been improved, thereby reducing the space required for module installation. This extra space created for the battery cells allows the total capacity to be increased from 65 kWh to 75 kWh, while keeping the external dimensions of the battery pack the same.
Designed and validated using Forward Engineering's unique BEV floor structure development tool, the Pure Performance Battery is approximately 2.1 meters long, 1.58 meters wide, and has a maximum height of 0.15 to 0.22 meters. This battery pack is suitable for a variety of vehicle architectures. In terms of weight, the new GF-SMC cover cells are comparable to current high-end solutions, but with significantly improved performance.
In addition, the semi-integrated modular design of this cell allows for flexible adjustment of the number of modules and one-step production of complex geometries that can tailor the cell performance level to meet the requirements of all regions.
Not only that, the battery pack's cover is designed to be easily removable for quick access to battery modules and peripherals. In addition, the lid itself can be recycled through Lorenz Kunststofftechnik's recycling process and used again in new composite parts.
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