By Josh Perry, Editor [email protected]
Researchers at Simon Fraser University (Surrey, British Columbia) in Canada are working to improve the efficiency of light electric vehicles (LEV) by creating the next generation of passive cooling solutions for battery chargers.
SFU professor Majid Bahrami of the School of Mechatronic Systems Engineering (MSE) with a prototype battery charger being developed for light electric vehicles. (Simon Fraser University)
According to a report from the university, the researchers turned to graphite to build a 1,200 W passively, air-cooled LEV charger, which is the maximum power for a North American residential power outlet.
“The researchers are using sophisticated graphite sheets to enhance thermal performance, eliminate parasitic cooling power and decrease electromagnetic interference,” the report explained. “Parasitic cooling power is the power that fans, pumps and other cooling devices consume to cool down the device (and can eat up as much as 15 per cent of the total energy usage of the device).”
Graphite has superior thermal conductivity to standard battery charger materials, which allows it to enhance heart transfer with less surface area. It is also lightweight and corrosion-resistant.
Researchers are working with Canadian companies Delta-Q Technologies and Terrella Energy Systems to commercialize the chargers and recently received a $300,000 Innovate BC award to further the study.
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