What would our cars look like if they were all only powered by electricity? Engineers, designers, technicians, and even material suppliers would need to have a rethink, since innovative technologies will change both the design and construction of vehicles in equal measure. thyssenkrupp Steel’s development team has also been working to find solutions to such future issues for some time.
thyssenkrupp Steel is using affordable, lightweight vehicle structure solutions, highly stable and safe battery housings, and especially efficient electrical drive motors made from electrical steel to demonstrate the enormous potential of innovative steel solutions for electric vehicles.
In the future, the steel group will pool its high level of electromobility material and application expertise under the name selectrify®.
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The selectrify® reference structure presents a virtual development of the chassis of an electric vehicle. This provides thyssenkrupp Steel with a guideline as to how high-strength steels can be best applied.
The aim is to create economical and production-ready solutions from steel for weight-optimized and safe electric vehicles. They emphasize the high potential of high-strength steels and new steel technologies. The material and application concepts have been tested using the tools and methods of leading automotive developers.
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The battery is the key component in electric vehicles. The selectrify® battery housing provides newly developed steel designs that meet the highest requirements in terms of crash safety, weight, and overall costs. Steel is the most economical material for battery housing in mass production.
Battery housings consist of a casing with a frame, a connection profile, upper and lower support arms, an underride guard, and a cover. The steel concept can meet requirements while being nearly as light as aluminum and significantly more cost effective.
It also offers significant advantages in terms of fire protection and electromagnetic compatibility.
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Another product from the selectrify® portfolio is used in drive systems: its trade mark powercore® electrical steel. Electrical steel is a highly pure, magnetically soft iron-silicon alloy that is used to guide and concentrate the magnetic flow present in the motor. thyssenkrupp is the leading electrical steel manufacturer in Europe and fifth worldwide.
The company offers intelligent powercore® solutions, thus making a valuable contribution to the energy transition.
The powercore® product range includes both grain-oriented electrical steel for use in the distribution of energy (transformers) and non-grain-oriented grades for use in energy generation (generators) and energy use (motors).
Also in development are functional coatings for an economically efficient packet structure for automotive manufacturers, plus improved noise generation management in the drive system.
