The Battery Enclosure located in the chassis part is composed of an upper cover and a lower shell. The Battery Enclosure is the bearing part of the power battery of new energy vehicles, which is mainly used to protect the lithium battery from damage when it is impacted or squeezed by the outside world.
At present, in order to ensure the safety of chassis power battery, most pure electric vehicles will choose steel or aluminum alloy material as the protective shell of Battery Enclosure. Although it can protect the safety of the power battery to a great extent, it also faces the problem that the Battery Enclosure is self important, increasing meaningless servicing mass, increasing power consumption, reducing driving range, and even having different degrees of impact on the control of the vehicle.
Therefore, with the development of automobile energy saving, environmental protection and lightweight, there are many kinds of lightweight materials such as glass fiber reinforced composites, SMC sheet materials, carbon fiber reinforced composites and so on.
Advantages of SMC Composite Battery Enclosures
- Lightweight: SMC composites are significantly lighter than traditional metal materials, such as steel or aluminum, which can reduce the weight of the battery enclosure and improve the overall efficiency and range of the EV.
- High strength and stiffness: SMC composites offer high strength and stiffness, making them suitable for protecting the battery pack from external impacts and vibrations. SMC composites can also be designed to meet specific strength requirements, allowing for optimal material usage and cost-effectiveness.
- Design flexibility: SMC composites can be molded into complex shapes, allowing for greater design flexibility and customization. This can help optimize the space and shape of the battery enclosure, as well as reduce assembly time and costs.
- Corrosion-resistant: SMC composites are highly resistant to corrosion and environmental factors, which can help prolong the lifespan of the battery enclosure and ensure optimal performance and safety.
Comparisons to Other Materials:
- Steel: Steel is a commonly used material for battery enclosures due to its high strength and durability. However, steel is significantly heavier than SMC composites, which can reduce the overall efficiency and range of the EV. Steel is also susceptible to corrosion and may require additional coating or treatment to prevent rust.
- Aluminum: Aluminum is lighter than steel and offers good corrosion resistance. However, aluminum may not offer the same level of strength and stiffness as SMC composites, which can affect the overall durability and safety of the battery enclosure. Aluminum is also more expensive than SMC composites.
- Magnesium: Magnesium is a lightweight and corrosion-resistant material that offers good strength and stiffness. However, magnesium is more expensive than SMC composites and requires specialized manufacturing processes. Magnesium also poses certain safety risks, such as the potential for flammability.
- Composite materials: Composite materials, such as carbon fiber or fiberglass reinforced plastics (FRP), offer a unique combination of strength, stiffness, and lightweight. Composite materials can also be molded into complex shapes, allowing for greater design flexibility. However, composite materials tend to be more expensive than SMC composites and may require specialized manufacturing processes.
Application of SMC composite material in automobile battery pack shell
SMC is an important and widely used semi-finished product of molded composite products. With its excellent mechanical strength, high rigidity, high flame retardancy, corrosion resistance, dimensional stability, UV resistance, low specific gravity and other superior properties, SMC is widely used in automotive body parts, structural parts and functional parts, such as automotive dashboard, steering gear, radiator system, door, hood, etc Li case cover and so on, the largest application is the body panel, accounting for 70% of SMC consumption, the fastest growth is structural parts and transmission parts.
The power battery pack accounts for a large proportion in the vehicle quality, and the battery pack design should consider not only the sealing, waterproof, dust-proof, anti-corrosion, but also the insulation, but also the heat dissipation and electrostatic shielding of the battery box. Because of the ratio, the choice of shell material and lightweight is particularly important.
SMC has excellent lightweight effect, low price, good corrosion resistance and good insulation. It is a popular lightweight alternative material for battery pack shell. SMC composite materials are used in BAIC C30, C33, GAC a3x, A51, Geely Dihao (parameter | picture) ev450, futuristic K50 (parameter | picture), GAC new energy GAC motor ge3 530, Changan second generation escape (parameter | picture) EV battery pack shell.
