To find synergies and maximise impacts across the EU and beyond, the new cluster EnLightEVs has been created among five EU-funded projects.
The projects aim at developing innovative solutions, tested in industrial pilots, that can be rapidly applied in the automotive market to reduce the weight of electric vehicles (EVs), while considering structural integrity, passengers’ safety, and sustainability, through eco-design and circular practices.
To support the automotive sector in reaching these goals the EnLightEVs cluster is developing the following solutions:
- Advanced lightweight materials and components for EVs
- Recycled lightweight materials and end-of-life strategies
- Physics and AI-based models and sensors for quality control and structural integrity assessment
- Cost-effective manufacturing technologies
- Eco-design strategies supported by innovative LCA tools
- Innovative composite materials
- Strengthened Aluminium nanocomposite for casting, extrusion and welding
The projects participating in EnLightEVs are:
LEVIS
LEVIS project aims to develop lightweight components for EVs using eco-design and circular approaches. LEVIS makes use of multi-material solutions based on fibre-reinforced thermoplastic composites integrated with metal, which will be produced using cost-effective and scalable manufacturing technologies. The project consortium’s goal is to demonstrate the technical and economic feasibility of producing these components in three real-case demonstrators at a large scale: a suspension arm, a battery box set and a cross-car beam.
ALMA
ALMA’s ambition is to make electric cars more sustainable, lightweight, and efficient through an eco-design approach using advanced materials. The project is transforming the automotive sector from a linear to a circular model considering recyclability early in the design phase and concocting creative end-of-life solutions at an affordable cost. ALMA’s strength is in its cooperation and altruistic approach for the people and planet.
Fatigue4Light
Fatigue4Light project is focused on the development of new tests and computer simulation methods to better estimate the fatigue life of chassis components and to select the optimal materials for lighter vehicle chassis. The project will apply new materials tailored to the requirements of vehicle chassis, such as advanced high-strength steels, special automotive stainless steels, high-strength aluminium alloys and hybrid metal-fibre reinforced polymeric materials. The goal is to reduce vehicle chassis weight compared to the current solutions, taking into account eco-design and circular economy aspects.
FLAMINGo
FLAMINGo will propose a novel industrial manufacturing route for the efficient production of high-performance lightweight Aluminium composite materials thanks to a novel metallurgical and forming combined approach for making automotive parts. The goals of FLAMINGo will be related to the manufacturing of a strengthened Aluminum Metal Matrix nano-Composites (Al-MMnC) with elevated properties, in terms of strength and stiffness, compared to current Al alloys. FLAMINGo will provide engineering solutions to substitute steel components in battery electric vehicle (BEV) automotive parts and achieve a substantial reduction of weight.
REVOLUTION
REVOLUTION focuses on overcoming the challenges hindering the use of recycled materials, but more broadly, restricting the widespread adoption of circular economy principles in the automotive industry. REVOLUTION aims to demonstrate automotive components, using polymer solutions that feature optimised recycled materials to increase light-weighting opportunities that extend the range and efficiency of EVs and improve end-of-life separation of components to facilitate proper dismantling and the material’s reuse, recovery, and recycling.
All projects are funded under call LC-GV-06-2020 Advanced light materials and their production processes for automotive applications.
The cluster EnLightEVs is supported by the Horizon Results Booster initiative of the European Commission which aims to bring a continual stream of innovation to the market and maximise the impact of public funded research within the EU.