An aluminum alloy material for electric vehicles with dramatically improved thermal durability has been developed, and it is expected to contribute significantly to reducing the risk of electric vehicle accidents in the future.

The Korea Institute of Materials Science (KIMS, President Choi Cheol-jin) announced on the 9th that the research team led by Dr. Eo Gwang-jun and Dr. Son Hyeon-woo of the Aluminum Research Lab of the Metal Materials Research Division succeeded in developing an aluminum alloy for electric vehicles with dramatically improved durability.

The research team discovered a new mechanism by which nanostructures within aluminum alloys operate, and confirmed that the alloy developed through this improved thermal durability by up to 140% compared to materials from advanced foreign companies.

The existing aluminum battery outer material has a problem in that it continuously deteriorates due to the heat emitted by the battery, which critically increases the risk of accidents as the electric vehicle ages. The newly developed aluminum alloy adds various trace elements to the existing 6000 series aluminum alloy to increase thermal durability and delay the deterioration of exterior materials due to heat generation.

The research team built a new database by adding dozens of trace elements and analyzing nanostructures through a cutting-edge nanostructure precision analysis process using transmission electron microscopy and 3D atomic force microscopy.

Based on this, we were able to confirm that several elements can improve thermal stability.

Aluminum alloys with thermal durability enhancement technology can exhibit excellent properties in parts that are used for long periods of time in high-temperature environments, such as electric vehicle battery exteriors and supersonic aircraft structural materials.

Existing thermal durability enhancement technologies have limitations in that they utilize a database of elements that have long been used in aluminum alloys.

This study is significant in that it diversifies the database of thermal durability enhancement technologies and suggests new directions for alloy design.

The electric vehicle battery casing market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.4% from USD 464.9 million in 2020 to USD 863.3 million in 2029.

Although we are currently lagging behind advanced overseas companies in terms of technological competitiveness, it is expected that localization through this technology will not only have an import substitution effect but also enable exports.

Dr. Son Hyun-woo of the Korea Institute of Materials Science and Engineering, who led the research, said, “If the technology developed this time is commercialized, it will be an opportunity to raise awareness of the need for the development of high value-added aluminum alloys, which are currently lagging behind advanced foreign companies, and to encourage domestic companies to enter the research and development market more actively.”

This research was conducted through the Korea Institute of Materials Science's basic project and National Research Laboratory (N-Lab.) project with support from the Ministry of Science and ICT. Furthermore, the research results have been published in three SCI-level papers and two related patents have been filed. The research team has completed basic research on manufacturing technology for aluminum alloys with excellent thermal stability and is currently conducting follow-up research with the goal of achieving technological maturity through applied research and transferring the technology to domestic aluminum battery casing manufacturers.