Hadi discusses his role and involvement with regards to EV batteries, industry challenges, what he is looking forward to at the event and why it is important for engineers to attend.
Q: Could you briefly explain your role, involvement, and experience with regards to EV batteries?
Hadi Moztarzadeh (HM): I joined the APC earlier this year, in July, as the Head of Technology Trends. Our department looks into strategic technologies and future trends and translate them into roadmaps, insight reports and thought leadership pieces, to articulate technology advancements and its implication for the automotive sector. In this process we need inputs and contributions from all parts of industry, government and funding bodies as well as academia and research and technology organisations. We therefore work very closely with the Automotive Council, industry and trade bodies, like SMMT and of course government and funding bodies to ensure that the development of insights and roadmaps inform their strategic decision making, investment plans, and funding allocations, to support the future of the UK automotive sector.
A major part of our role is supporting the transformation of the automotive sector, from ICE to electrification. Battery technology is a big player in this transformation. We support every stage of the battery ecosystem, from R&D and materials chemistry, developing the upstream supply chain, to cell and module and pack design and manufacturing and integration of the electrical powertrain into the vehicle system. This is a very complex landscape which needs wide-ranging insight into current and emerging technologies and all-tiers of supply chains for EV batteries.
Q: Many OEMs are pledging to be fully electric by 2030/2035, in light of this what would you say we need next to ensure a mainly electric vehicle presence in the market in the UK?
HM: First, I have to say we need to be pledging to a zero emission transport vision rather than focusing on a single solution or technology. Our journey towards the net-zero transport vision will require a mix of solutions and options to become a reality.
In the context of light duty vehicles (LDVs), batteries and electrification proved to be the right path, and most of the OEMs are focusing on electrification as a solution to decarbonise that vehicle segment. We have reflected on the role of batteries in both the energy storage roadmap, on the technology side, and the LDV roadmap, on the product/vehicle side.
The transition from ICE to EVs would involve not just OEMs but the whole supply chain. This shift to electrification involves a lot of challenges and of course brings opportunities for the automotive sector, to reshape the mobility and transport paradigm. The R&D ecosystem is shifting their focus and attention to more reliable and more efficient battery systems and electric powertrains. At the same time, we need to develop the required infrastructure and consider the energy ecosystem, and look into the underpinning technologies like digitalisation.
Focusing on the powertrain only, the whole battery ecosystem, from battery materials and chemistry R&D, to the upstream supply chain, as well as manufacturers and OEMs, they all need to rethink their role and redesign the way they work and deliver products and services. For the battery systems, we published the value chain analysis and identified the individual steps in making batteries. We need to ensure the right interventions, support mechanisms and policies and investments are in place to ensure we support the transformation of the automotive supply chain across the whole value chain to achieve electrification targets.
Q: What do you think is the main area in the battery lifecycle that needs development to ensure a net-zero carbon lifecycle to match the 2050 target?
HM: It is important to recognise that reducing carbon emissions cannot be limited to tailpipe emissions. When we talk about net-zero economy and a net-zero transport sector, we need to consider the lifespan of a vehicle. That’s why we have seen a major shift from tailpipe emissions to the life cycle emission of a vehicle, and it is being highlighted across the policy documents and regulations.
Emissions targets, recycling mandates and eliminating harmful chemicals are incentivising industry to improve the environmental impact of batteries, from chemicals and materials to manufacturing and their usage.
As such, we need to ensure we anchor the upstream supply chain in the UK. Having an established supply chain could incentivise automotive OEMs to bring their production to the UK and bring cross-sector benefits.
Therefore, I think battery chemistry, design and development are all important, but anchoring the supply chain, especially the upstream supply chain should be the main focus area for both public and private investments.
Q: What key topics are you excited to discuss at this year's conference?
HM: The critical role of battery materials and the upstream supply chain for battery manufacturing; topics like materials cost modelling and life-cycle analysis (LCA) to enable a sustainable transport sector, would determine the future of electric vehicles in the UK and globally.
The other important topic to look into would be around the role of digitalisation for the automotive industry, specifically how digitalisation would facilitate the transition to electrification – from design and testing to safety and security of vehicle systems. This topic includes the role of digitalisation and automation for the manufacture and production of vehicle sub-systems, powertrain, battery systems, etc.
And the third one for me would be a more thorough understanding of the energy sector. There is obviously a direct link between the energy sector outputs and the electrification journey. As the transition towards EVs would probably put a lot more demand on the energy sector, we need to understand and reflect on the required infrastructure and diversify our energy sources to include and invest more in renewable energy.
Q: Regarding new technologies for battery use and operation, what would you say are the ones to watch for the future?
HM: I think one is around new battery chemistries, and this is mainly due to the fact that we do not have rare earth materials here in the UK, so using different chemistries could enable us to build a more diverse source of supply and hence a more resilient supply chain in the UK.
The second technology trend would be around life cycle and end-of-life for battery cell materials. We need to advance in this area to move towards net-zero carbon production systems for batteries. So, we need to include and integrate LCA into our battery value chain and work towards a more circular economy model for battery systems.
And the third one is around digitalisation and automation of the battery design, manufacturing and testing, at cell level as well as module and pack level. As these processes across the battery systems value chain become more embedded into the OEMs' operational processes, effective use of digital tools and solutions could streamline and standardise these steps across the industry and ensure the value-add across the whole value chain. It could decarbonise manufacturing and production of the vehicles. The right design process could enable the right LCA framework for battery systems.
Q: Who else are you most interested in hearing from on the programme?
HM: I am really excited about meeting up with the speakers and attendees from many of the leading industry and research and technology organisations at this year’s conference.
I am looking forward to lots of discussions and debates at this event, which will hopefully lead to greater understanding of challenges and opportunities for the automotive and transport sector.
I believe that R&D in the automotive and transport sector will leverage the role of innovation in other sectors, so I would hope to see more cross-sector technical challenges and discussions. For example, we need a greater understanding and coherency across the transport and energy sectors to achieve net-zero targets. At the end of the day, we have to think about the role of zero emission transport in a net-zero economy, so the question remains how we facilitate knowledge exchange and cross-sectoral innovation, transfer knowledge and know-how from vehicle electrification to other sectors, to support industrial decarbonisation at scale.
Q: Why is it important for engineers to join this year’s International EV Batteries conference?
HM: On top of a great networking opportunity with industrial leaders and policy makers in this area, this two-day conference provides a platform for stimulating discussions and understanding of the latest trends and drivers in the EV market and gives a fairly thorough view of opportunities and challenges across the sector. So, whatever your role is across the EV battery ecosystem, you could update your knowledge and technical understanding of the issues and reflect upon them in your work.
I also hope we stimulate discussions around future battery technologies, battery materials, alternative chemistries and maybe a system-view framework to design, test, produce and recycle EV batteries to support end-to-end solutions, to accelerate the progress towards net-zero targets.
This year’s International EV Batteries conference will be taking place on 8-9 November 2022 in the heart of the world famous Grand Prix circuit at Silverstone. To book your place, please visit www.imeche.org/evbatteries.