Zn-Air Pack Vehicle Range Extender with a Cell Change-Out With Overall Vehicle Durability Cost

Although Li-ion batteries are currently the dominant energy storage solution in electric vehicles, they currently do not possess enough energy density required for long driving ranges at a reasonable cost. One solution is to utilize Zn-air batteries since they have both a high theoretical energy density and contain abundant raw materials allowing for low production costs. However, before they can become a commercially viable solution to meet the energy storage demands of today’s electric vehicles, additional research is required in a number of different areas. The short-term objectives for this research collaboration are:
1. Improve the durability of zinc-air batteries by designing new air electrodes and optimizing the electrode thicknesses.
2. Develop new powertrains that can accurately incorporate a zinc-air battery and determine the energy management strategy for optimal performance.
3. Determine the feasibility of cell replacement in a hybrid zinc-air/li-ion electric vehicle.

Faculty Supervisor:

Michael Fowler

Student:

Partner:

Karlsruher Institut für Technologie

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Education

University:

University of Waterloo

Program: