What’s Ahead for the Venerable 12-V Automotive Battery? (.PDF Download)

July 20, 2017
What’s Ahead for the Venerable 12-V Automotive Battery? (.PDF Download)

Many pundits believe that given the greater proliferation of more electronics in modern automobiles with each new model year, the decades-old, sealed lead-acid (SLA) 12-V car battery is being strapped to handle automotive power demands. Not only are more infotainment and safety electronic features being added every year, but when you include stricture emission and fuel-economy requirements, one can surmise that even the most efficient SLA battery in use today needs some help.

That said, the 12-V battery is here to stay, at least for the near term—i.e., the next few years. But it has its many drawbacks, including the fact that the lead element is hardly in vogue ecologically. And except for a few applications that need its heavy weight, the heavier higher-voltage batteries like 24 V or 36 V just weigh down the car further.

In fact, a 42-V auto battery system was proposed in the late 1990s in favor of 48 V to supplement the 12-V battery for automotive electrical power. The 48-V approach was deemed optimal in terms of fuel-efficiency savings, helping auto manufacturers meet emissions standards, and providing more power for the growing number of features desired by drivers to propel electric motors and electronic systems.

The 48-V supplement to a 12-V battery has been demonstrated to be a better approach by Controlled Power Technologies, which is part of the advanced diesel-electric powertrain (ADEPT) consortium. The consortium’s aim is to develop 48-V intelligent electrification using an advanced lead-carbon battery.

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