se demand for this magnetically-soft material to over a million tonnes a year in Europe alone, depending on demand. Steel manufacturers are focusing on making these electrical steels tougher and thinner in order to reduce the weight of the motor.
As the physical limits in this field have almost been reached, in future manufacturers will differentiate themselves primarily through their expertise in bonding, joining, and forming technologies. In addition, special alloys with a higher silicon and aluminium content reduce heat loss in the motor during magnetic reversal by up to 30%. Manufacturers able to demonstrate expertise in this segment will secure themselves an excellent starting position in the growing electromobility market.
Battery protection: Attractive field of activity for European steel manufacturers
Three quarters of batteries are currently manufactured in Asia, the study confirms. For European industries, this means a lack of expertise and of access to sufficiently established value chains. Not so for the housing: The battery elements need a correspondingly large container which offers sufficient protection in the event of a crash and prevent substances from leaking after an accident.
Battery casings are a new field of activity for European material manufacturers, and also for voestalpine which offers particularly lightweight and secure battery housing solutions. As the battery module as a whole can account for up to 40% of a vehicle’s weight, in addition to the safety aspects, such criteria as weight, cost-effectiveness, and sustainability are all considerations in material selections. In contrast to aluminium, titanium, and fibre composites, steel has the advantage of a superior ability to withstand distortion during accidents.
The advantages of steel for climate protection
Climate protection is the key driver of electromobility. However, if fossil fuels are used in the production of aluminium or carbon, and where the electricity in charging stations is not generated from renewables, the carbon footprint of even an electric vehicle remains completely unsatisfactory. From an ecological perspective, the success of electromobility depends on a smooth energy transition. We must not forget the impact of the materials being used; compared to aluminium or carbon, steel is particularly advantageous in this respect, requiring less energy to produce and subsequently process, and able to be eventually recycled with no loss of quality.
Electromobility is a rapidly growing market
In the EU electromobility is being promoted directly through purchasing incentives for electric vehicles, and indirectly through more stringent emissions requirements for vehicles with conventional drives, the study explains. To date the low vehicle range and comparatively high purchasing costs have deterred consumers from purchasing an electric vehicle.
“These negative factors are lessening because developments in battery technology will eliminate the range disadvantages by 2025 and allow battery costs to fall to a third of their current level,” says Kleibrink. In the current year electric vehicles could at least partly reduce their price disadvantage compared to vehicles with combustion engines. By 2025 it is estimated that over 14 million electric vehicles may well have been sold in the EU. According to the study, this is a trend in which steel as a material will play an important role: steel will dominate in an intelligent future materials mix which is designed to maximise cost efficiency, sustainability, and safety.
voestalpine in pole position for the future
voestalpine entered Formula E as a sponsor this season in order to develop electromobility further, as well as to actively encourage technology transfer between automotive suppliers, manufacturers, and customers. The fully electric race series, run in cities around the world, is the high speed development laboratory and testing ground for tomorrow’s production vehicles, making it the perfect partner to voestalpine and enabling the Group to further extend its leading position in this ra