Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (VWGoA) is boosting its automotive analysis in america to additional speed up electrical mobility and sustainable transportation innovation. The corporate continues to heart strategic areas of analysis in devoted expertise models throughout the nation, in addition to foster co-innovation with universities and federal analysis amenities.
One key unit is situated in Tennessee: Volkswagen’s Innovation Hub in Knoxville is driving utilized supplies science in collaboration with the College of Tennessee (UT) and Oakridge Nationwide Lab (ORNL). There, built-in groups are pushing breakthroughs in automotive light-weight composites, recyclable inside supplies, and EV wi-fi charging.
“We’re accelerating innovation inside electrical autos and contributing to extra sustainable transportation in America by focusing our efforts on a few of the most transformative automotive analysis being completed within the nation,” mentioned Pablo Di Si, President and CEO at Volkswagen Group of America Inc. “Our expertise groups in Tennessee are an ideal instance. There, we’re tapping American ingenuity fostered by the distinctive mix of world-class tutorial analysis and Volkswagen’s main {industry} capabilities.”
Opened in 2020, Volkswagen’s Innovation Hub is situated on the College of Tennessee Analysis Park at Cherokee Farm in Knoxville, in a area known as ‘the Supplies Valley’ as a result of focus of analysis amenities. This consists of the ORNL, of which VWGoA has additionally established analysis collaborations. Volkswagen researchers, UT school and doctoral college students in addition to ORNL scientists collectively drive analysis and co-innovation of utilized supplies analysis.
“Centering extra information in america is a part of Volkswagen’s technique for progress and is important for sourcing and creating expertise,” Di Si added.
“The Volkswagen Innovation Hub is a robust instance of the sort of scientific advances and industry-ready expertise that you may carry to market if you find scientists and researchers from throughout disciplines and organizations collectively in a single place.”, mentioned UT Chancellor Donde Plowman. “With companions like Volkswagen, Oak Ridge Nationwide Lab, and others {industry} leaders and tech startups situated at UT’s Analysis Park, we’ve created a thriving innovation ecosystem.”
The Innovation Hub groups lead analysis within the following key tasks:
AI-optimized materials constructions to extend electrical car vary
Volkswagen researchers are engaged on new materials constructions to scale back car weight, which helps to extend the vary of electrical autos (EVs). As a primary pilot, the crew has chosen the metal body that homes the EV battery pack within the car and shields it from bodily impacts.
By working a deep studying algorithm (simplified: synthetic intelligence) with as much as hundreds of thousands of parameters on UT’s excessive efficiency compute cluster, the crew has developed a modular repeating construction in shapes of tiny pyramids. This construction might be 3D-printed from liquid resins and holds 30,000 instances its personal 0.15lbs-weight (68g). A newly created body can be as much as 60 % lighter. Hardcore sturdiness assessments confirmed that it exceeds the standard metal body in vitality absorption, and will function a light-weight, but ultra-robust various.
Paper-based supplies for car inside design
The hub crew at UT’s Heart for Renewable Carbon is creating recyclable alternate options to plastic components and foils within the car inside. Their focus: paper. The crew has patented a technique of preforming and hot-pressing cellulose fiber strengthened thermoplastics into the sturdy inside components clients anticipate.
These paper-based composites usually are not solely recyclable, they can be reworked into varied inside sizes and styles, together with backlit and ambient gentle choices. The crew has additionally innovated methods so as to add completely different textures and colours, so car inside designers get pleasure from flexibility and artistic freedom.
The Volkswagen model is already checking alternatives to incorporate these paper-based inside components in future mannequin strains and work to assist industry-scale manufacturing.
New fiber composites for light-weight car components
The Volkswagen crew kicked off light-weight supplies analysis with UT by recreating the raise gate of a MY2020 Volkswagen Atlas utilizing sheet molding compound (SMC), a sort of fiberglass strengthened plastic. The brand new raise gate proved to be 13 kilos lighter than the standard metal-based model; a weight-savings of greater than 35 %, which might assist to extend the vary of electrical autos and people powered with a combustion engine. As well as, the choice composite raise gate doesn’t want adjustments in meeting sequence in comparison with standard variations – which means these elements are match for top volumes.
The crew’s analysis breakthrough has already discovered its method into car manufacturing. Bentley and Lamborghini have adopted these new supplies and the molding course of for the Bentley Continental, and within the Lamborghini Aventador. The crew in Knoxville has additionally began a analysis venture to discover light-weight choices for pickup beds and rugged elements.
Extra lately, Volkswagen and UT researchers have additional refined molding processes and methods to optimize sturdiness, high quality and design choices. One particular take is to optimize the fiber-matrix-interface, a course of referred to as “sizing” – basically creating the smoothest, most sturdy coat for fibers doable.
New high-power wi-fi EV charging ideas
Volkswagen’s crew has patented a novel coil and charging pad design with silicon-carbide supplies to optimize charging pace and security. Their purpose: Assist make charging an electrical car as straightforward and cozy as pulling into a standard storage spot.
Within the first early trials with a silicon-carbide inverter, this prototype system has proven excessive effectivity. Utilizing Volkswagen’s experience in car energy electronics, ORNL’s capabilities in excessive energy wi-fi charging, and UT’s information of energy electronics optimization, the analysis crew has been in a position to enhance the charging energy stage as much as 120 kW with this prototype from an earlier 6.6kW prototype, with a future purpose of 300 kW.
Volkswagen’s Innovation Hub Knoxville is contributing to the worldwide Volkswagen Group’s bigger innovation ecosystem, together with innovation facilities in Belmont, California; Wolfsburg, Germany; and Beijing, together with hubs in Singapore, Tel Aviv and Tokyo.
Jul 18, 2023