E-mobility is a broad field. Where do you see the applications
for various technologies?
Luigi Giordano: We need to make a distinction between pas-
senger cars, commercial vehicles, SUVs, and all the non-auto-
motive applications. With passenger cars, we see more pure
electric propulsion, whereas in the commercial vehicle sector
there is also potential for propulsion systems based on fuel
cells and hydrogen.
Jürgen Rechberger: Yes, absolutely. The key to these appli-
cations is energy storage. With a battery, we can currently
only store a relatively limited amount of energy. Hydrogen can
do much more – it will play an important role wherever large
vehicles and long distances are involved: i.e., in aircraft, ships,
and trucks. For cars, most requirements can be covered using
battery electric propulsion.
Gerhard Meister: There are various ways to achieve sustain-
able mobility; at AVL we are working on solutions for several
energy carriers. If you can use electrical energy directly, BEVs
(battery electric vehicles) are the perfect solution – being
five times more efficient than vehicles that are powered by
synthetic fuels. The bottleneck to becoming carbon neutral is
in producing electricity from renewable sources and in storing
the electric energy. The more efficient you are, the easier it is
to manage the transformation. It is important to bear in mind
that we are aiming for climate neutrality overall, not just in the
transport sector.
The new energy mix for sustainable mobility raises the ques-
tion: How do we get new technologies to function optimally
– as well as make them affordable for the industry?
Giordano: The optimization of new technologies for sustain-
ability and consideration of their affordability starts during the
development phase. Costs can be reduced through smaller
batteries, faster charging times, and more efficient electric mo-
tors. In addition, our testing facilities, through the extensive use
of virtualization, enable our customers to test the propulsion
system components in the widest range of operating condi-
tions, which saves significant costs and accelerates develop-
ment times.
Meister: In electromobility, cost and charging infrastructure
are among the key challenges in terms of a broad roll-out. The
huge need for battery storage is keeping battery prices high. To
alleviate the pressure on supply chains, new battery cells need
to come to market. Sodium-ion batteries, for example, are on
the rise for certain applications. They are cheaper to manufac-
ture and could lighten the high pressure on demand for lithi-
um-ion batteries, thus helping to reduce the price of batteries in
the medium term. Generally, in view of cost sensitivity, scarce
raw materials need to be used as sparingly as possible and
recycling needs to be set up in a way that uses as little energy
as possible. To this end, AVL has just implemented an innova-
tive battery cooling solution that doesn’t need heat-conducting
paste. This makes it much easier to separate the different
materials from one another in terms of the substances during
recycling. So, you need to use less energy to return to raw
materials that are suitable for batteries. This is a good example
of how we are driving sustainability.
Could you tell us a bit more about hydrogen and its potential
impacts on the world of mobility?
Rechberger: Hydrogen will be needed primarily for the de-
carbonization of energy-intensive industries and the energy
system. Industrial processes such as steel production currently
require a lot of energy in the form of coal and natural gas.
Hydrogen is the only option for extensive decarbonization in
this sector. The second key role of hydrogen is in energy im-
port. Even with massive expansion of local renewable energy,
countries like Austria and Germany will have immense energy
deficits. In the future, a carbon-neutral energy carrier will have
to be imported and that will be renewable hydrogen or a hydro-
gen derivative such as ammonia or methanol. In this sense,
hydrogen is even crucial for our electric vehicles, as it will help
to secure the energy supply for them.
How do you see the future development of e-mobility?
Meister: The most important thing when it comes to e-mobility
is that anyone who hasn’t tried an electric car out yet should
if they can, the driving experience is fantastic. It’s silent and
the acceleration is amazing. The technology has reached a
high level of maturity and is ready to be rolled out widely. The
charging infrastructure is also very good in many countries
these days.
Rechberger: Yes, we are already very close to a good solution
at vehicle level. My concern is more regarding the underlying
energy supply and the corresponding infrastructure. We need
to be much faster and must accelerate the development of lo-
cal renewable production dramatically. Of course, we also need
to focus on energy imports in the form of hydrogen and on the
additional expansion of the infrastructure.
Giordano: The further development of electric power grids
and their linking between regions is essential for balancing the
natural fluctuations in renewable energy sources. This is key
to ensuring that cheaper power can be made available to end
users when they are charging their vehicles.
Interview with
Gerhard Meister
Luigi Giordano
Jürgen Rechberger