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What was the biggest elephant in the room at COP26?
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Insight
Dec 21, 2021
What was the biggest elephant in the room at COP26?
Wednesday November 10 was a significant day for the planet. It was the much awaited ‘transport day’ at COP26 and saw governments and car manufacturers descend upon Glasgow to discuss how we can significantly increase the uptake of electric vehicles.
Such an occasion deserved a major announcement – and it got one! Twenty-four countries and a group of leading car manufacturers agreed to end the production of fossil-fuel powered (internal combustion engine) vehicles by 2040. Leading car manufacturers such as Ford, Mercedes-Benz and Volvo signed the accord to stop selling fossil-fuelled vehicles in leading markets by 2035. There’s no doubt that all electric EV adoption is already growing and announcements at COP26 will go some way to continuing this trend. After all, electric vehicle purchases in China, the US and Europe – the top three EV auto markets – surged by 160% in the first half of 2021 from a year earlier, aided by the enthusiastic backing of national governments.
However, for many vehicle owners, the elephant in the room remains that question of range and infrastructure. With the right supply chain, materials and processes, it is possible for OEMs to start silencing that elephant in the short-term.
But throughout the developments on the much-awaited transport day was one elephant in the room that was not receiving quite as much airtime – that of infrastructure and the current charge range of EVs. While it was largely acknowledged that infrastructure is critical to EV uptake, there was less commitment about how this long range infrastructure will be built – and how such work could be accelerated ahead of 2035. Could this be why so many large names were absent from the agreement?
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Silencing the elephant
EV infrastructure and range represent something of a chicken and egg scenario. Consumers won’t buy electric cars en masse if the power infrastructure is not there, but climate change targets cannot afford to wait until the energy infrastructure is built before carmakers encourage adoption of electric cars. This considered, how do you silence the elephant in the room?
One way is by working collaboratively with the automotive supply chain to view EV components at a systems-level and utilising innovative engineering techniques that maximize potential range of an electric vehicle. Through the use of new materials for example, it is possible to maximize the performance and reliability of the inverter within the power electronics, which enables carmakers to maximize vehicle range without adding battery weight, adding substantial additional range to EVs, even without the necessary urban infrastructure.
At MacDermid Alpha Electronics Solutions, we have long pioneered silver sintering for this purpose. Using silver sinter technology such as ALPHA® Argomax® to replace traditional solder material, has been proven to increase the efficiency of the electric powertrain. Furthermore, sintering can be effective regardless of the powertrain configuration, whether plug-in hybrid, fuel cell or battery electric. All these powertrains require an inverter to convert electricity to provide power to the drivetrain. When this is maximized, it is possible to improve range, power and reliability, enabling some carmakers to dispel a level of range anxiety among consumers.
EV – a growing trend
There’s no doubt that all electric EV adoption is already growing and announcements at COP26 will go some way to continuing this trend. After all, electric vehicle purchases in China, the US and Europe – the top three auto markets – surged by 160% in the first half of 2021 from a year earlier, aided by the enthusiastic backing of national governments.
However, for many car owners, the elephant in the room remains that question of electric vehicle infrastructure and range. With the right supply chain, materials and processes, it is possible for OEMs to start silencing that elephant in the short-term.
