New Delhi: The Ministry of Road Transport has implemented stringent testing and testing norms for cells, battery packs and Battery Management System (BMS) to prevent fire in electric vehicles.
The ministry has proposed that all EVs manufactured from this October must comply with additional safety requirements relating to battery cell and thermal diffusion due to internal short circuit.
The two Automotive Indian Standards (AIS) for electric vehicles have been changed in the backdrop of several incidents of fires in electric two-wheelers in different parts of the country. The ministry had constituted a panel of experts to suggest changes.
The new norms mandate manufacturers to provide a “safety fuse” in the system so that the battery is immediately disconnected if excessive heat is generated or high current flows.
Four mandatory sensors have been provided in a vehicle to quickly detect anything wrong with the entire battery system and this is automatically reflected in the console of the vehicle and thereby alerts the driver to act.
The new rules will be applicable to two wheelers, cars and goods vehicles.
AIS criteria specify that there must be a sufficient cell-to-cell spacing distance for effective heat transfer from the cell and separation of cells in case of thermal runoff in rechargeable energy storage systems (RESS).
In case of two wheelers, the BMS system should have the features of over-voltage, over-charge, over-discharge, over-temperature, over-current and short circuit protection.
The charger will require a charge voltage cut-off to avoid overcharging of REESS. The charger will also have a time-based charge cut-off function that stops further charging based on the timeout.
The revised AIS norms state that the REES will have audio-visual warnings for early detection of gases in case of thermal events or thermal runaway of cells. This alert will be activated.
Thermal runaway is a chain reaction within a battery cell that once started can be very difficult to stop. This occurs when the temperature inside the battery reaches a point where a chemical reaction takes place inside the battery.
The ministry has also issued a draft notification making Confirmation of Production (COP) mandatory for traction batteries used in electric vehicles.
The ministry has proposed that all EVs manufactured from this October must comply with additional safety requirements relating to battery cell and thermal diffusion due to internal short circuit.
The two Automotive Indian Standards (AIS) for electric vehicles have been changed in the backdrop of several incidents of fires in electric two-wheelers in different parts of the country. The ministry had constituted a panel of experts to suggest changes.
The new norms mandate manufacturers to provide a “safety fuse” in the system so that the battery is immediately disconnected if excessive heat is generated or high current flows.
Four mandatory sensors have been provided in a vehicle to quickly detect anything wrong with the entire battery system and this is automatically reflected in the console of the vehicle and thereby alerts the driver to act.
The new rules will be applicable to two wheelers, cars and goods vehicles.
AIS criteria specify that there must be a sufficient cell-to-cell spacing distance for effective heat transfer from the cell and separation of cells in case of thermal runoff in rechargeable energy storage systems (RESS).
In case of two wheelers, the BMS system should have the features of over-voltage, over-charge, over-discharge, over-temperature, over-current and short circuit protection.
The charger will require a charge voltage cut-off to avoid overcharging of REESS. The charger will also have a time-based charge cut-off function that stops further charging based on the timeout.
The revised AIS norms state that the REES will have audio-visual warnings for early detection of gases in case of thermal events or thermal runaway of cells. This alert will be activated.
Thermal runaway is a chain reaction within a battery cell that once started can be very difficult to stop. This occurs when the temperature inside the battery reaches a point where a chemical reaction takes place inside the battery.
The ministry has also issued a draft notification making Confirmation of Production (COP) mandatory for traction batteries used in electric vehicles.