Does an EV need a radiator, coolant & front grille? What is Sundaram Fasteners supplying to Tesla?

SmartCat · 17th November 2017, 13:29

Logically NO, right? But check out this article -
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com...w/61682765.cms

It says Indian component maker SUNDARAM FASTENERS is now supplying bevel gears and "surge tank caps". It goes on to say surge tank caps are equivalent of radiator caps and it is there to "protect the coolant".

Could this be to cool the battery or electric motors, which might get hot after prolonged usage?

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EFF-EIGHT-BEE · 17th November 2017, 13:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by smartcat

Logically NO, right? But check out this article -
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com...w/61682765.cms

It says Indian component maker SUNDARAM FASTENERS is now supplying bevel gears and "surge tank caps". It goes on to say surge tank caps are equivalent of radiator caps and it is there to "protect the coolant".

Could this be to cool the battery or electric motors, which might get hot after prolonged usage?

Attachment 1697210

Yes, Tesla battery packs are water cooled. They use a liquid coolant (just like cars) circulating in tube throughout the battery pack. The battery pack consists of several small lithium ion batteries which generates a lot of heat during operation, hence cooling them becomes extremely important. Infact there is one video on YouTube where a person did the teardown of the battery pack and he drained the coolant first. Other than that, A/c condenser will also use the front grill for heat exchange.

R2D2 · 17th November 2017, 13:45

Just hazarding a guess here.

But I think it could be for motors and/or other electrical circuitry that operate in the tight confines of a compact car. Got this idea since I use a liquid cooled PC. Maybe Tesla plans to or already cools motors, motor control & batteries/battery charging circuits via LC heat sinks.

Makes sense if one uses more and more powerful electrical components in hot weather/countries.

amitk26 · 17th November 2017, 15:37

The 85 KWh Battery pack of Tesla consists of 7200 Li-Ion Cells of Standard 18650 Size ( 18mm diameter X 65mm length and 0 means round) there is a mix of 18650 and 21700 size cells. These cells are arranged in parallal blocks and 96 such blocks are connected in series to give required current.

In a laptop battery there are 6 or 8 such cells and you can notice that it gets heated up while charging and discharging so heat dissipation is required to prevent thermal runaway ( Thermal runaway in Li-Ion battery can cause it to explode as seen in mobiles). To overcome this a radiator system and coolant running around cell blocks in tubes is used.

Please note though the cell size is standard owing to take advantage of scale I am not sure if electrolyte composition is same or different for these cells as normal cell used in laptops etc. The OEM for cells is Panasonic

17th November 2017, 13:29	#1
SmartCat Team-BHP Support Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 7,190 Thanked: 51,790 Times View My Garage	Does an EV need a radiator, coolant & front grille? What is Sundaram Fasteners supplying to Tesla? Logically NO, right? But check out this article - https://economictimes.indiatimes.com...w/61682765.cms It says Indian component maker SUNDARAM FASTENERS is now supplying bevel gears and "surge tank caps". It goes on to say surge tank caps are equivalent of radiator caps and it is there to "protect the coolant". Could this be to cool the battery or electric motors, which might get hot after prolonged usage?
	(2) Thanks

17th November 2017, 13:45	#3
R2D2 Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Pune Posts: 3,257 Thanked: 5,849 Times	re: Does an EV need a radiator, coolant & front grille? What is Sundaram Fasteners supplying to Tesla? Just hazarding a guess here. But I think it could be for motors and/or other electrical circuitry that operate in the tight confines of a compact car. Got this idea since I use a liquid cooled PC. Maybe Tesla plans to or already cools motors, motor control & batteries/battery charging circuits via LC heat sinks. Makes sense if one uses more and more powerful electrical components in hot weather/countries.
	(2) Thanks

17th November 2017, 15:37	#4
amitk26 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 2,089 Thanked: 716 Times	re: Does an EV need a radiator, coolant & front grille? What is Sundaram Fasteners supplying to Tesla? The 85 KWh Battery pack of Tesla consists of 7200 Li-Ion Cells of Standard 18650 Size ( 18mm diameter X 65mm length and 0 means round) there is a mix of 18650 and 21700 size cells. These cells are arranged in parallal blocks and 96 such blocks are connected in series to give required current. In a laptop battery there are 6 or 8 such cells and you can notice that it gets heated up while charging and discharging so heat dissipation is required to prevent thermal runaway ( Thermal runaway in Li-Ion battery can cause it to explode as seen in mobiles). To overcome this a radiator system and coolant running around cell blocks in tubes is used. Please note though the cell size is standard owing to take advantage of scale I am not sure if electrolyte composition is same or different for these cells as normal cell used in laptops etc. The OEM for cells is Panasonic
	(4) Thanks