What are electric car batteries made of?

 What are electric car batteries made of?

Are electric car rentals something you're interested in? It's crucial to understand how this kind of vehicle operates and the components of electric car batteries, one of their most crucial components, if you wish to operate one.

Our intention is for you to learn about the kind of rental automobile you want before you sign your contract. For those who enjoy all things electric, we have previously covered themes like:

What are the more autonomous electric vehicles?

The least expensive electric vehicles

On this occasion, we'll discuss the advancement of battery components, one of the parts that makes operating electric vehicles make sense and that is always  important to keep it in good condition.

Go for it!

What purpose does an electric car's battery serve?

We'll discuss the purpose of this component before revealing the materials used to make an electric car's batteries.

As we already established, an electric car's battery is essential to its operation since it converts the energy generated during charging into chemical energy.

Batteries are made up of cells that are connected to each other and that work together to give the engine the energy the vehicle needs to circulate.

Depending on what the components of this part are , we can determine some important aspects of the vehicle such as:

The autonomy of the car.

The loading speed.

The weight and the design.

The price.

Battery types

The constant demands by users when purchasing an electric vehicle that meets their expectations and meets their needs, has led to different types of batteries that differ from each other in their composition materials.

Not all electric cars are the same and one of the factors that make the difference is the battery.

Next, we will analyze what the batteries of electric cars that exist on the market are made of.

Lithium batteries

They are the most widely used today as they offer users excellent weight, performance and lifespan characteristics.

One of its great advantages is that they do not have the dreaded memory effect , so vehicles with this type of battery allow a greater number of recharges without losing capacity.

Lead-acid

They are usually found in older models and have been clearly displaced by lithium batteries, thanks to the advantages that the latter offer. Its operation is based on the reaction of the lead plates with sulfuric acid.

Although it is true that lead-acid batteries require a lower initial investment , their maintenance is more complex, therefore, you will have to change it much faster.

One of the main problems that these types of batteries offer is that the charge is much slower than lithium batteries . For example, recharging this type of battery lasts 8 hours while lithium batteries will have a full charge in 1 hour.

They are usually very heavy, since energy efficiency is much lower than in the case of lithium batteries, which, with less space, manage to store less energy.

Nickel cadmium

They are hardly used anymore, since they are very expensive and have a memory effect, that is, the more times you charge the battery, the less capacity they have.

Lithium battery materials

As you have seen, they are the most used, below we will tell you which are their components of the positive pole or cathode that are the ones that make the price of electric cars more expensive.

Nickel: in recent years the use of this material has managed to reduce the use of cobalt.

Manganese: This material is used in the latest generation cars. It helps to take care of the battery and measure its potential when it is fully charged.

Cobalt: It is a rare and expensive material, which is why electric cars have a higher price . In this sense, it is being studied to reduce its percentage in the composition and, in this way, reduce the materials that make up this piece and, in the future, the costs can be lowered.

It is important to note that all these materials are recyclable. In fact, today between 55% and 77% of battery materials can be recovered after their useful life.

The ideal way to reduce costs is for these percentages to increase more and more and, in this way, be able to reduce the cost of batteries, one of the parts that most influence the price of an electric car.

Do you want to bet on an electric? The best thing is that you choose it in your next rental so you can see for yourself what the cars of the future will be like. If you need us to advise you, do not hesitate to contact us .