Temperature remains a key challenge for battery-electric CVs

The theoretical safe operating temperature range for a lithium-ion battery (LiB) is between minus 20 and 60 degrees Celsius. Despite this, in real-world LiB applications like electric vehicles (EVs), the optimum range for maximising a battery’s life is much narrower: between 15 and 45 Celsius, according to Octopus Energy. Any higher and the battery will begin to degrade and could cause a thermal runaway event. Any lower and the discharge rate will become increasingly sluggish, significantly reducing performance.

The latter is problematic as EV penetration grows beyond temperate early adopter territories like California, which rarely experiences temperatures lower than nine degrees Celsius even at night in winter. It’s also a challenge for electric commercial vehicles (eCVs), which must be capable of withstanding fluctuations in heat and cold across long transport routes.