Industry Voices | Key Safety Features to Look for in Heavy-Duty EV Batteries

The future of heavy-duty transportation is here, and it involves propulsion systems beyond combustion engines. As more transportation companies seek to lower their carbon emissions and gain independence from fossil fuels, many of them are focusing on one key trait when assessing potential battery solutions for their fleets: increased range.

While range is of tremendous importance for heavy-duty transportation applications, there are exciting developments outside of increased capacity and efficiency in the realm of next-gen batteries. Increased battery safety is a top focus for many of these recent breakthroughs, even though research has shown that existing concerns about EV battery safety are largely overblown.

According to recent data published by the National Transportation Safety Board, gas-powered and hybrid vehicles account for significantly more safety issues than battery-powered vehicles per 100,000 units. As this IEEE Spectrum article points out, EV battery-related incidents are simply covered more frequently by the media, as battery-powered vehicles are still considered an emerging technology.

So, while EV batteries are already very safe for heavy-duty vehicles, they are about to get even safer. Here are three key safety innovations in next-generation commercial transportation battery solutions that will increase acceptance of long-range and heavy-payload electric vehicles.

A Modular Approach to Safety

The modern evolution of electric heavy-duty vehicles has reshaped the way fleet operators think about battery integration. For a long time, long-range and heavy-duty transportation battery packs have looked a lot like big bricks. To maximize the range they could provide, these energy bricks were often installed in various locations around a vehicle, including storage closets. As a result, proper ventilation could not always be maintained. As battery technology has matured, so have the design elements that streamline the integration process and increase safety.

Modern battery packs are designed for easy connection and disconnection, and their protective enclosures include sophisticated ventilation and cooling systems. Along with a more streamlined look, these advanced enclosures help improve operational safety and thermal management.   

Predictive Analytics and Automated Optimization

It is important to keep lithium-ion batteries within a safe operating range, and that can be a challenge considering the extreme demands placed on them in heavy-duty transportation applications. Fortunately, the technology that manages the performance of these battery packs has evolved by leaps and bounds in recent years.

Modern battery-management systems include predictive analytics algorithms that anticipate dangerous over- or under-voltage conditions and temperature variations that may have a negative impact on battery performance. Better yet, some state-of-the-art management systems do much more than provide alerts if a battery is entering an unsafe operating range: They can automatically adjust and optimize battery performance in real-time to account for problematic environmental factors, improving operational safety in the process.

Protection Against Thermal Runaway

Modern battery-management systems for heavy-duty transportation applications are also helping to prevent and contain thermal runaway risks. These next-generation safety solutions represent a particularly effective combination of software, sensors and industrial design. On the software side, sophisticated algorithms can detect damage and defects in batteries before they create safety issues, mitigating the leading cause of thermal runaway. Sensors are used to detect the distinct mix of gases that are produced during a thermal runaway event, adding another proactive layer of protection. From a design standpoint, high-temperature barriers and containment features are used to compartmentalize thermal incidents within the pack, preserving the integrity of the surrounding environment. These features work together to create a multifaceted wall of protection against the most dangerous lithium-ion safety concerns.

We are exiting the “early adopter era” of heavy-duty electric vehicles, and just as battery technology has evolved at an accelerated pace, so have the safety features for commercial transportation applications. Ultimately, these safety innovations will help enable bigger, more powerful and longer-range EV batteries in the years to come.

These next-generation safety features will ensure that high-capacity battery systems can deliver long-range, heavy-payload and around-the-clock usage in the toughest conditions – all while providing quiet, sustainable, efficient and user-friendly performance. When they’re considering a heavy-duty battery solution for trucks, buses or delivery vehicles, fleet operators should make sure that the integrated safety features are just as impressive as the range.