Kashish Rangari

Electric Vehicles

What is an electric vehicle?

An electric vehicle (EV) operates on an electric motor, instead of an internal-combustion engine that generates power by burning a mix of fuel and gases. Electric Vehicles include road and rail vehicles, surface and underwater vessels, electric aircraft, and spacecraft. Though the concept of electric vehicles has been around for a long time, it has drawn considerable interest in the past decade amid a rising carbon footprint and other environmental impacts of fuel-based vehicles. An electric vehicle may be powered through a collector system by electricity from off-vehicle sources or self-contained with a battery, solar panels, fuel cells, or an electric generator to convert fuel to electricity. 

What are the Different types of electric vehicles? 

Electric Vehicles can be broadly classified into 8 different types: 

• Plug-in Electric Vehicle 
• On- and Off-road Electric Vehicles
• Space Rover Vehicles 
• Seaborne Electric Vehicles
• Airborne Electric Vehicles 
• Electrically Powered Spacecraft
• Range-extended electric vehicle
• Railborne Electric Vehicles.

Which type of electric vehicle are we using? 

Plug-in Electric Vehicle (PEV): A plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) is any motor vehicle that can be recharged from any external source of electricity, such as wall sockets, and the electricity stored in the Rechargeable battery packs drives.

Plug-in Electric Vehicles can be further categorized into: 

• Plug-in Hybrid Electric vehicles, (PHEVs)
• Battery electric vehicles (BEVs)

1. A plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV): is a hybrid electric vehicle whose battery can be recharged by plugging it into an external source of electric power, as well as by its onboard engine and generator. Most PHEVs are passenger cars, but there are also PHEV versions of commercial vehicles and vans, military vehicles, utility trucks, trains, motorcycles, buses, and mopeds.

2. Battery Electric Vehicles: A battery electric vehicle (BEV), pure electric vehicle, only-electric vehicle, or all-electric vehicle is a type of electric vehicle (EV) that exclusively uses chemical energy stored in rechargeable battery packs, with no secondary source of propulsion. Battery Electric Vehicles (BEV) thus have no internal combustion engine, fuel cell, or fuel tank. Some of the broad categories of vehicles that come under this category are trucks, cars, buses, motorcycles, bicycles, forklifts, etc.

Advantages of Electric Vehicles:

1. Environmental Advantages: Electric cars (or electric vehicles, EVs) have several environmental benefits compared to conventional internal combustion engine cars. They Have the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Reduce dependence on petroleum, Reduce health effects from air pollution, Reduce dependence on petroleum, They produce little or no tailpipe emissions. 

2. Better Energy Efficiency: Internal Combustion engines will consume fuel even when the vehicle is stationary, whereas, in electrical vehicles, the energy is not consumed when it is stationary. Electrical Vehicles ‘tank-to-wheels’ efficiency is about a factor of 3 higher than internal combustion engine vehicles. 

3. Mechanical Advantages: They can be finely controlled and provide high torque from rest, unlike internal combustion engines, and do not need multiple gears to match power curves. Hence it removes the requirement for gearboxes and torque converters, Lesser vibration, Lesser noise, Electric motors are mechanically very simple and often achieve 90% energy conversion efficiency over the full range of speeds and power output and can be precisely controlled. 

Challenges: 

1. Battery Manufacturing: It is estimated that by 2020-30 India’s cumulative demand for batteries would be approximately 900-1100 GWh. However, there is concern over the absence of a manufacturing base for batteries in India, leading to sole reliance on imports to meet rising demand. As per government data, India imported more than $1 billion worth of lithium-ion cells in 2021, even though there is negligible penetration of electric vehicles and battery storage in the power sector.

2. Consumer-Related Issues: In April 2022, India was reported to have only 1742 charging stations, which is quite less than its neighboring counterparts who already had over 5 million charging stations. The lack of charging stations makes it unsuitable for consumers in covering long range. Moreover, it takes up to 12 hours for a full charge of a vehicle at the owner’s home using a private light-duty slow charger. Also, the cost of a basic electric car is much higher than the average price of a car running on conventional fuel. 

3. Policy Challenges: EV production is a capital-intensive sector requiring long-term planning to break even and profit realization, uncertainty in government policies related to EV production discourages investment in the industry.

4. Lack of Technology and Skilled Labour: India is technologically deficient in the production of electronics that form the backbone of the EV industry, such as batteries, semiconductors, controllers, etc. EVs have higher servicing costs which require higher levels of skills. India lacks dedicated training courses for such skill development.

5. Unavailability of Materials for Domestic Production: Battery is the single most important component of EVs. India does not have any known reserves of lithium and cobalt which are required for battery production. Dependence on other countries for the import of lithium-ion batteries is an obstacle to becoming completely self-reliant in the battery manufacturing sector.

Govt Initiatives: 

1. India is among a handful of countries that support the global EV30@30 campaign, which aims for at least 30% of new vehicle sales to be electric by 2030. 

2. In February 2019, the Union Cabinet cleared an Rs. 10,000-crore program under the FAME-II scheme for the promotion of Electric Mobility in the country. 

• Objective: To encourage faster adoption of electric and hybrid vehicles by offering upfront incentives for the purchase of EVs, Also by establishing the necessary charging infrastructure for EVs.The scheme will help in addressing the issue of environmental pollution and fuel security. Initially envisioned for three years, FAME-II got a two-year extension in June 2021 owing to several factors including the pandemic. It aims to support 10 lakh e-two-wheelers, 5 lakh e-three-wheelers, 55,000 e-four-wheeler passenger cars, and 7,000 e-buses.

3. In the 2022 budget, a battery swapping policy was announced as an easier way to charge EVs. The battery swapping model for supplying power has side-stepped the lack of charging infrastructure but the future is likely to see a mix of both models. The government also announced a Production Linked Incentive scheme for automakers, a part of which aims to boost electric vehicle manufacturing.

4. Electric Vehicle Policy (EV) 2020: The Delhi Government has announced the Electric Vehicle Policy 2020 where the emphasis will be given to the replacement of two-wheelers, public transport and shared vehicles, and goods carriers instead of private four-wheelers, with Electric Vehicles (EVs).

• Following are the features of the Electric Vehicle (EV) Policy 2020: As per this policy, the focus will be shifted to e-mobility, including e-autos, e-buses, etc. The Government will also offer low-interest rate loans to buy electric vehicles, A state EV fund will be introduced to cover up the expenditure of the EV Policy. The main objective of the Electric Vehicle Policy is to reduce air pollution and curb the health emergency issues in the state of Delhi, These e-vehicles will also reduce the expense of buying motor vehicles.

5. The Union Cabinet has approved an Rs. 18,100-crore Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for manufacturers of Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC) battery storage, to reduce imports. The scheme is called the National Programme on Advanced Chemistry Cell Battery Storage (NPACC). It is under the Ministry of Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises. 

About NPACC Scheme:

The plan is to set up a 50-gigawatt hour (GWh) manufacturing capacity for ACC batteries by attracting investments totaling Rs. 45,000 crores. It Requires each selected ACC battery Storage manufacturer to set up an ACC manufacturing facility of a minimum 5 GWh capacity, achieves a domestic value addition of at least 25%, and incur the mandatory investment of Rs.225 crore /GWh within 2 Years. Furthermore, the beneficiary firms need to ensure a minimum 60% domestic value addition at the Project level within five years. The incentive will be disbursed over five years. It will be paid out based on sales, energy efficiency, battery life cycle, and localization levels. It will ensure import substitution of around Rs. 20,000 crores every year. 

Data analysis on EVs in India: 

1. Three-wheeler EVs like e-autos and e-rickshaws account for close to 65% of all EVs registered in India. In contrast, two-wheeler EVs come at a distant second with over 30% of registrations and passenger four-wheeler EVs at a meager 2.5%. Under the targets for FAME-II, e-three-wheelers have crossed over 4 lakh vehicles off the 5-lakh target since 2019. At the current rate, e-three-wheelers are expected to breach the 5-lakh target by 2023. The EV registrations data show that Assam, Bihar, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal account for close to 80% of all e-three-wheeler registrations, with U.P. accounting for close to 40% of all registrations.

2. About two in every hundred cars sold today are powered by electricity with EV sales for the year 2020 reaching 2.1 million. The global EV fleet totaled 8.0 million in 2020 with EVs accounting for 1% of the global vehicle stock and 2.6% of global car sales.

Why are electric vehicles catching fire?

Batteries do store energy in a small package and if the energy is released in an uncontrolled fashion, the thermal event can be significant. Battery fires, like other fires, occur due to the convergence of three parts of the “fire triangle”: heat, oxygen, and fuel. If an adverse event such as a short circuit occurs in the battery, the internal temperature can raise as the anode and cathode release their energy through the short.

• What can be done to prevent these fires? 

1. Preventing fires requires breaking the fire triangle. Battery cathodes are a leading cause of heat release. Some cathodes, such as ones with lower nickel content or moving to iron phosphate, can increase safety. 
2. Tightly controlled manufacturing (Like adding a Ceramic layer) will prevent accidental shorts in the cells, eliminating a leading cause of fires.
3. Protecting the cell with robust thermal management is critical, especially in India where ambient temperatures are high. 
4. Battery packs need to be protected from external penetration.

What can be the way forward for electric vehicles?

1. EVs will contribute to improving the overall energy security situation as the country imports over 80% of its overall crude oil requirements, amounting to approximately $100 billion. The push for EVs is also expected to play an important role in the local EV manufacturing industry for job creation. Additionally, through several grid support services, EVs are expected to strengthen the grid and help accommodate higher renewable energy penetration while maintaining secure and stable grid operation. 

2. EV Charging Infrastructure: An EV charging infrastructure that draws power from local electricity supply can be set up at private residences, public utilities such as petrol and CNG pumps, and in the parking facilities of commercial establishments like malls, railway stations, and bus depots. The Ministry of Power has prescribed at least one charging station to be present in a grid of 3 km and at every 25 km on both sides of the highways. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs under the Model Building Bye-laws, 2016 (MBBL) has mandated setting aside 20% of the parking space for EV charging facilities in residential and commercial buildings. Giving effect to the MBBL will also require the state governments to introduce necessary amendments to their respective building bye-laws.

3. Need of the hour is to shift the focus from subsidizing vehicles to subsidizing batteries because batteries make up 50% of EV costs. Increasing focus on incentivizing electric two-wheelers because two-wheelers account for 76% of the vehicles in the country and consume most of the fuel.