Aug 24 2015
Electric vehicle manufacturers may not be unanimous in what type of battery technology they will offer consumers in the future but regardless of the electric vehicle path they pursue, Freudenberg-NOK Sealing Technologies (Freudenberg-NOK) components will help seal the systems.
Freudenberg-NOK has tapped into its comprehensive network of material, manufacturing and marketing experts to deliver a portfolio of e-Mobility solutions that address customer requirements in a variety of electric vehicle systems. Freudenberg-NOK has also worked with its sister Freudenberg companies, and with customers, to develop engineered components that function flawlessly in the most demanding of environments.
Among the company's electric vehicle offerings:
- Overpressure Valves: For use in large-format lithium ion battery systems. The valves are designed to maintain their seal during normal pressure variations due to heating/cooling of the battery. The seals release if internal battery pack pressure exceeds predetermined limit and prevents potential battery system damage. Freudenberg-NOK offers two types of valves: a naturally closed, single deployment valve and a sophisticated, naturally closed, open/close multi-deployment valve that is spring or magnetic activated.
- Housing Gaskets: A family of solutions for serial and prototype automotive lithium ion battery applications. Gaskets can be reused after battery maintenance and are optimized to address three dimensional sealing surfaces and profiles, homogeneous forces and tolerance compensation.
- Plug & Seal: This elastomer-coated tube with a sealing and shock absorbing geometry works for applications across several industries. It accommodates a host of diameters, lengths, angles and end geometries, and can survive extremes of temperature, pressure and chemical environment. The tube material can be metal or thermoplastics with different types of elastomers such as EPDM, FKM and silicone. The tube can be equipped with instruments to measure temperature or pressure.
- Cell Frame Seal: A mounting structure for pouch type cells that both holds and stabilizes the cell. It also provides an additional sealing function for the sealed seam of the pouch, equalizes thickness tolerances of the cells, and provides additional mechanical fixing for electric connectors. The frame features passages for directing battery gasses in the case of a cell rupture and cooling channels for refrigerant circulation
- Breathable Element: Breathable components produced from Freudenberg nonwoven materials that optimize the ability of the battery system to repel water, oil, and dirt contamination. The structure of the fabric creates a "deep filter" affect in the battery unit that ensures the exchange of gases even when exposed to environmental contaminants.
- Pressure Compensation: Freudenberg is developing several products to address the duty cycle pressure variations within a battery pack. Whether using a sealed pressure compensator or a hygroscopic filter unit, these products allow expansion and contraction of air within the battery pack without introducing additional moisture.
"Freudenberg-NOK offers all vehicle manufacturers important electric vehicle system solutions that help optimize electric vehicle performance," said Jeff Nelson, senior director, Automotive, Freudenberg-NOK. "The company has tapped into its global expertise to ensure that its products are designed, developed and manufactured to the highest quality and performance standards. These standards are critical when our customers are working to build broader consumer knowledge and acceptance of alternate fuel scenarios like electric cars."
Freudenberg-NOK utilizes nearly two dozen polymer families and more than 2,000 raw materials to provide premium battery protection technologies, including battery pack gaskets, cell frame sealing, plug-and-seal technologies, compensation elements and liquid detectors.
The Freudenberg-NOK Mechatronics engineering staff is well versed in electronics, heating, interconnection systems, wiring and other technologies. Its flexible printed circuits are mechanically and electronically integrated into a single unit with a bus bar plate to reliably connect the individual cells that make up hybrid and electric vehicle battery packs. Freudenberg-NOK Mechatronics also produces flat wire and liquid detection sensing for multiple applications, which provide superior heat distribution, weight and packaging savings and reduced assembly time.