Overcoming Challenges for Sustainable Transportation

Electric vehicles are a smart and sustainable choice for the future, and the challenges and concerns surrounding them can be addressed with the right technology and infrastructure.

Ashish Sharma, Vice President, Automotive, India - Capgemini Invent has shared his insights on the challenges India faces in adopting electric vehicles (EVs). One of the most significant issues is the hot and humid climate in India, which impacts battery performance and longevity. Another challenge is integrating EV charging infrastructure with the existing power grid and more.

Climate's Impact on Electric Vehicle Batteries: Effects on Performance and Longevity

At optimal temperatures, EVs outperform their rated range, peaking to 115% of battery performance at about 21°C. At temperatures above 35°C, driving range may decrease by up to 17%. A battery system with Passive Cooling Technology is common for some EVs on Indian roads but it can still suffer serious and irreversible damage at 40°C and above.For EVs without Active Cooling Technology, thermal runaway can occur as batteries of such EVs may heat up quickly.

Here, BMS (Battery Management System)is key as it manages the charging rate in relation to the internal temperature of the battery. It decreases the charging rate at higher temperatures. If there is a heatwave (>35°C), which is common in India, then BMS can disable charging for safety reasons. Indian users often resort to DC fast charger which can speed up battery heating and its degradation during hot weather. This again compounds the effect of climate on the battery.BMS is the optimal solution here.

Integrating EV Charging Infrastructure with the Power Grid: Challenges in India

Although integration of EV charging infrastructure with the grid is essential for accelerated EV adoption, this has a few challenges. Increasing EV penetration will increase the power demand in low voltage grids. Charging is likely to be done in the evenings after working hours which will coincide with other loads during the peak period aggravating voltage instability.

Increase in peak load will contribute to overloading of the transmission system - assets like transformers, fuses, and cables. This will reduce the lifespan of the equipment and transmission efficiency. It would also stress the system with increased requirement of ramp limits. With added current flowing due to the extra and unbalanced charging load, the uneven loss in the three-phase system will also increase making the supply inefficient.

EV chargers are power electronic converter-based devices. These devices act as a non-linear load, introducing voltage and current harmonic distortions into the supply. It has been found that enhanced number of fast chargers without necessary upgradation to the distribution network deteriorates the reliability of the grid power supply.

The Impact of Charging Protocol Standardization on EV Adoption in India

In India, significant standardization can be achieved around Plug and Charge Technology, where currently three competing standards prevail. Effective deployment of charging infrastructures in India depends critically on the collaboration for standardization between OEMs, utility providers and policy makers. Standardization will encourage third-party new players to invest in charging infrastructure. EV owners then will be able to utilize preferred charging solution provider without being brand-specific, enhancing investment returns which in turn will increase the confidence level of prospective EV customers. Lack of such standardization will unfavourably impact the costs and customer experience.

On the battery swapping side, regulatory directives on design, safety requirements, testing and inspection rules for battery swapping models will result in industry growth. One way of standardization for Battery Swapping Technology lies with the cooperation of the OEMs towards common battery pack design to avoid the issue of unidirectional adoption of technology.

However, on the consumer side, according to Capgemini Research Institute’s recent report, “World Property and Casual Insurance” it is found that, Indian customers are more willing to adopt innovative mobility options than their global peers. 86% of the respondents in India showed interest in connected and alternate energy vehicles (electric and hydrogen vehicles), which is a very promising number.

The Challenge of Recycling Lithium-Ion Batteries in India's Electric Vehicle Industry

There are multiple challenges with recycling and disposing of lithium-ion batteries.The recycling process of Lithium batteries is quite complex due to composition of multiple materials. It is also energy intensive and can cause high pollution. Though lithium-ion batteries contain valuable metals, they are challenging to take apart and the minerals are hard to extract from the tight layers of inorganic and organic compounds. In addition to process complexity, currently there is lack of standardization in battery designs due to ongoing technology improvements, which can make it difficult to generate operations efficiencies.

The other major challenge is lack of lithium cell manufacturing in India; even if we recycle the metals, it will ultimately get used in other non-EV applications.

There is also lack of knowledge and awareness of the right disposal methods for lithium-ion batteries. So, this can lead to incorrect disposal and informal ways of recycling which can ultimately pose safety concerns. Battery explosions and fire and not uncommon during recycling. Strict adherence to rules and regulations is must by producers and end users to ensure environmentally sound management of waste batteries.

Rare Earth Metals Shortage: Implications for Electric Vehicle Growth in India

Limited availability of rare earth metals will pose a challenge to the growth and production of electric vehicles in India. But this situation is not unique to India and other countries also face a similar challenge.Mining and mineral processing is concentrated to limited geographies such as some parts in Africa, South America and China.

The scarcity of these metals leads to higher price volatility, which we have seen in the recent past. This which would ultimately make it more difficult to reduce prices of electric vehicles which is necessary to make this product affordable for the mass market.

The Indian Government is already looking into have agreements with countries that are rich in these minerals to secure supplies for India. The recent lithium find in J&K wouldboost our resilience to external supply shocks. Incentivizing domestic mining and processing of these metals will reduce dependence on imports.

We also need to keep investing in other strategies to address the issue of limited availability. This can be done through investing in alternative business models such as recycling and greater investment in battery technology R&D that can reduce our dependence on rare earth metals.

Ashish Sharma, Vice President, Automotive India- Capgemini Invent