Project aims to enhance electric vehicle development
Five UK universities are to jointly investigate how the UK automotive sector can improve the crucial technologies for low-carbon vehicles, such as batteries and supercapacitors.
The project, funded by the Technology Strategy Board (TSB), aims to help manufacturers develop more efficient power systems, which could lead to better-designed and cheaper electric vehicles.
The FUTURE (Fundamental Understanding of Technologies for Ultra Reduced Emissions) project involves engineers from Imperial College London and Oxford, Coventry, Cranfield and Loughborough universities.
‘We came together last year after a call from the TSB, which wanted academics to support the emerging low-carbon vehicle industry in the UK over the next five to 10 years,’ explained Greg Offer, who is leading the Imperial team.
The universities are studying four different technologies that could be used in future electric vehicles: batteries and supercapacitors (grouped together because they share a scientific basis); fuel cells; electrical machines; and the power electronics that control the systems.
‘This is pre-competitive research, so although we have automotive and other specialist companies on our advisory panel, they aren’t dictating the direction of the research,’ Offer said.
Register now to continue reading
Thanks for visiting The Engineer. You’ve now reached your monthly limit of news stories. Register for free to unlock unlimited access to all of our news coverage, as well as premium content including opinion, in-depth features and special reports.
Benefits of registering
-
In-depth insights and coverage of key emerging trends
-
Unrestricted access to special reports throughout the year
-
Daily technology news delivered straight to your inbox
BEAS funding available to help businesses cut energy costs
And not a moment too soon, if the following exchange broadcast last Friday 13th June, on the Radio 4 ´Rare Earth´ program (link below, ~ 17 minutes...