DuPont Debuts Centers of Excellence for Automotive Electrification
The global facilities to accelerate advanced mobility solutions focus on battery safety, thermal management, and e-powertrain efficiency.
September 17, 2021
DuPont Mobility & Materials is opening three global Centers of Excellence (COE) to accelerate the development and testing of new applications for automotive electrification. Dedicated resources focused on vehicle electrification will allow fast application development to help validate new concepts in shorter timeframes. These COEs will enable DuPont experts to accelerate assessment of reliability, performance, cost optimization, time-to-market, and consumer adoption.
“More than two-thirds of the global vehicle market is expected to be electrified to some degree by 2030. OEMs and suppliers must rise to the challenge to provide more sustainable and advanced vehicle solutions that don’t compromise on performance or safety,” said Kara Grasso, Global Strategy Director, Advanced Mobility, DuPont Mobility & Materials. “DuPont has the expertise, technical capabilities, and range of solutions to help our customers meet their toughest challenges, and our new COEs are perfect for inspiration and collaboration.”
DuPont COEs will focus on three key areas crucial to driving EV technology forward — battery safety, thermal management, and e-powertrain efficiency. Each COE will have dedicated personnel and equipment to accelerate the development and adoption of new technologies, as follows:
Battery safety (Geneva and Shanghai). Objectives: Help meet safety requirements while increasing energy density, fast-charging endurance, and cost optimization.
Thermal management (Geneva and Freienbach, Switzerland). Objectives: Improve fast-charging speed, cold-weather performance, and battery reliability, all at a controlled cost.
E-powertrain efficiency (Geneva). Objectives: Optimize power electronics, e-motor efficiency, and energy/packing density while maintaining reliability at the highest levels.
To meet growing demand in all regions, including the United States, the COEs will interact on a global basis with other DuPont technical and R&D centers worldwide, including the new Innovation Center in Auburn Hills, MI. The COEs have pilot-scale capabilities and use the same methodologies as OEMs and Tiers, including:
Processing equipment to make parts and prototypes (molding, extrusion, assembly).
Ideation enhanced by VR, 3D printing, and machining capabilities.
Application testing (electrical, safety, thermal, mechanical).
Module-scale performance testing.
Analytical lab (tomography, thermal conductivity, electrical properties).
Advanced simulation tools for design and correlation analysis (CAE/CAD).
Scale-up pilot plant capability.
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