Energy Saving and New Energy Vehicle Technology Roadmap 2.0

Since the release of "Energy Saving and New Energy Vehicle Technology Roadmap 2.0" in 2020, the industry's enthusiasm for developing hybrid technology has been rekindled in a very short period of time. By the end of 2021, almost all mainstream independent brand car companies have launched their own hybrid system architecture. With the development of the market, the demand for special components for hybrid systems has also become an inherent part of the question. Specific to the battery, what type of battery does a hybrid car need, and what factors determine the market's choice? These issues are seldom discussed, but it is necessary to explore them in depth.

Recently, "China Automobile News", the media with the longest history and the greatest influence in my country's auto industry, released an in-depth observation article on the auto industry "On-demand Customization Prospects - Hybrid Batteries Seeking Common Ground while Reserving Differences" through interviews with domestic vehicle and battery companies Gaming Market” (author Ma Xin Zhang Yahui), pointed out that different hybrid configuration batteries have different needs, but they all pursue safety, high rate, and long life. Ni-MH, ternary, and lithium iron phosphate will coexist for a long time. Ni-MH batteries are important for the industry development is important.

The hybrid boom is sweeping. According to the statistics of relevant agencies, in the first half of 2021, the total sales volume of hybrid passenger vehicles (HEV) in my country is about 247,000, a year-on-year increase of 72%. The representative companies are mainly Honda and Toyota. , Self-owned brand car companies have not yet made a major breakthrough. However, many companies have launched their own technology and product solutions. However, the semantics of "hybrid" contains too much content, not only is it easy for ordinary consumers to be confused, but it may take a lot of work for industry insiders to clarify what it means in a certain context. At present, plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) belongs to the sequence of new energy vehicles, while hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) belongs to the category of energy-saving vehicles.

According to the "Decision on Amending the Parallel Management Measures for Average Fuel Consumption and New Energy Vehicle Points of Passenger Car Enterprises" issued by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in June 2020, plug-in hybrid vehicles can obtain 1.6 new energy vehicle points; while hybrid vehicles ( HEV) is classified as "low-fuel consumption passenger vehicles"; at the same time, "in 2021, 2022, and 2023, the production or import volume of low-fuel consumption passenger vehicles is calculated according to 0.5 times, 0.3 times, and 0.2 times the number respectively. "The regulations have also strengthened the determination of enterprises to develop hybrid technology.

"Hybrids have very unique requirements for components. From the perspective of large-scale configuration, the requirements for batteries of hybrid (HEV) and plug-in hybrid vehicles are quite different from those of pure electric vehicles, and there is a big difference between the former two. The same is the engine and transmission, the demand for hybrid vehicles is completely different from that of traditional fuel vehicles." Liu Jianguo, Director of the Product Technology Office of the Technology Center of GAC Passenger Vehicle Co., Ltd., introduced.

A related person from Honeycomb Energy told reporters that pure electric vehicles use energy-type batteries, plug-in hybrid vehicles use energy and power-type batteries, and hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) use power-type batteries. The battery of a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) is mainly used for acceleration and energy recovery, and the power is generally small, about 0.8~2.1kWh depending on the model; in addition, since there is only a hybrid mode, its power and cycle life There are high demands.

The reporter also learned that following the design ideas of vehicle manufacturers, the battery requirements of different hybrid configurations also have commonalities to follow. "At present, the common hybrid technology routes of self-owned brand car companies are basically two categories: power splitting and dual-motor series-parallel connection. From this perspective, the industry's demand for hybrid batteries has a certain consistency." Liu Jianguo believes.

Relevant personnel from Toyota said that hybrid technology pays more attention to the instantaneous power of the battery, pulse cycle life, calendar life and low-temperature start-up performance, etc. What is needed is a power-type battery with more instantaneous explosive power. The core of pure electric vehicle power batteries is energy density, cost, cycle life and safety. It is more inclined to expand the advantage of driving range, and what is needed is an energy-density battery with sustainable output.

"Battery safety has always been the primary concern of vehicle manufacturers. At this stage, there are two mainstream routes in the battery selection of hybrid vehicles (HEV), one is nickel metal hydride batteries, the other is NCM523 ternary lithium batteries battery." Liu Jianguo told reporters, "Whether NCM523 lithium battery or nickel-metal hydride battery has a lot of application experience, and its safety has been fully verified. Then, the second concern is how to help the hybrid system And the whole vehicle is as fuel-efficient as possible. Taking the hybrid vehicle (HEV) as an example, the R&D personnel need to make the engine always run in the most fuel-efficient and economical range through the cooperation of various components, and need to pay attention to the charging and discharging performance of the battery In comparison, the battery discharge rate of a general pure electric vehicle is about 1~3C, while the discharge rate of a special battery for a hybrid vehicle (HEV) should reach 10C."

In addition, the cycle life of batteries for hybrid vehicles is very important. Relevant persons from Corun supported this point of view: “Different hybrid models formulate battery matching strategies in pursuit of the highest engine efficiency. The power splitting route is mainly based on the engine, supplemented by power batteries, and batteries with fast and high-power discharge capabilities are required. ;The series-parallel route is mainly driven by electric drive (power battery), supplemented by the engine, which requires higher power of the battery."



With the development of hybrid vehicles with different technical routes, the battery matching of related vehicles is constantly evolving along their respective industrial logics. Through the launch of BYD's super-hybrid series models, blade-type lithium iron phosphate batteries have begun to be used in plug-in hybrid vehicles. In the field of hybrid vehicles (HEV), Honda has widely used ternary lithium batteries. Toyota still insists on the route of nickel-metal hydride batteries, and Constantly carry out new technology iterations.

"Non-nary lithium, nickel-metal hydride, and lithium iron phosphate batteries have their own advantages and disadvantages in terms of characteristics. Ternary lithium batteries have high energy density, but the cost is also high; lithium iron phosphate batteries have low cost and good stability, but discharge performance at low temperatures Relatively poor; nickel-metal hydride batteries are environmentally friendly, have higher reliability, and high charge-discharge rates, but the energy density is the second highest.” Liu Jianguo said, “Therefore, vehicle manufacturers still need to systematically consider motors, electronic controls, and engines according to vehicle design requirements. , transmission and other important components before choosing the battery type.”

After sorting out relevant information, the reporter found that Toyota, as an important pole in the hybrid vehicle market, adopted the THS power split technology route, and insisted on using nickel-hydrogen batteries as the mainstay. The economy, safety and durability of its hybrid vehicles have been recognized by the market. fully recognized. In August 2021, EVK new energy supplier Corun and Toyota China, Xinzhongyuan and Toyota Tsusho established a joint venture, Kelimei, a company specializing in the production and supply of nickel-metal hydride power batteries, completed the latest phase of production expansion. Production capacity reached 480,000 units. It can be seen that within a certain period of time, nickel-metal hydride batteries are still very important for the development of hybrid electric vehicles (HEV).

"Non-element lithium batteries have certain advantages in low temperature, power density and other fields, and are widely used in plug-in hybrid and hybrid electric vehicles (HEV); lithium iron phosphate batteries are mainly used in plug-in hybrid vehicles." Honeycomb Energy related person express.