Keeping Your EV Battery in Shape During Cold Weather

Monday - December 4 2023, 00:28 UTC - 11 months ago

With winter setting in, EV owners must know how weather affects the battery performance of their vehicle. EV range drop up to 12 percent when temperature falls to 20°F (-6°C) or below. Chargers with temperature gauge should be used, and charging should be done when the car has some warmth, for maximum battery performance.

The year is coming to an end, and the cold winter season is setting in. As a proud owner of an electric vehicle (EV), if you plan to take a trip to visit your family or friends, you must also take into account the weather that will accompany you.

The biggest concern with an EV in cold weather is the battery. You may have come across multiple reports about how the battery performance dips significantly in cold weather.

Battery of worries .

The American Automobile Association (AMA), in a 2019 report, acknowledged that the range of an EV can drop by as much as 12 percent when temperatures fall to 20 degrees Fahrenheit (°F) or below (-6 degrees Celsius, °C) compared to their range at temperatures of 75 °F (23.8 °C). If you live in areas where the mercury drops even lower, then you are likely to see a greater impact on your drive range.

The primary reason this happens is that the chemical reactions that take place in the battery are slower and less effective in cold weather. Interesting Engineering has previously reported how excessive heat impacts the battery. However, when the temperature drops, the reactions inside the battery are impacted again in the other way.

Of course, the other major reason why EVs have a lower range in the cold is that drivers are more likely to be using additional electricity to power the heating and defrost.

Charging is also slower in the cold. If you look closely at the operation ranges of battery cells, you will find that Lithium-ion batteries can discharge in a wide temperature range of -4 to 140 °F (20 to 60°C). However, when it comes to charging, the recommended temperatures are limited to 0 and 45 °F (-17 to 7°C). This is because charging at lower temperatures prevents the intercalation of lithium ions into the graphite of the cathode. Instead, they coat the surface of the anode and become inert to ion exchange in a process called lithium plating. This reduces the number of free lithium ions available for the battery to work with, thereby reducing the performance and lifetime of the battery. Now that you know what to look out for, here's a little help from us at Interesting Engineering on how to keep your EV in the best shape during the cold weather.

1. No fast charging .

Lithium plating is a phenomenon that is exacerbated by high charging rates. So, minimizing fast charging is important to conserve your battery life. This effectively leaves out most commercial charging points, but you can still use home trickle chargers.

If you have access only to a Level 2 charger, the next step is important for getting the maximum out of that battery pack.

2. Warm charging .

If you need to use a faster charger, it is recommended that you do so when the car itself is a bit warm. This can be achieved by parking the car in an indoor garage where temperatures stay warmer. Understandably, not all car owners have access to indoor garages, so an alternate option would be to warm your car before charging it with a Level 2 charger. This will moderately improve the battery pack’s temperature over the surroundings and make it fit for faster charging.

Whether you are using a Level 1 or Level 2 chargers, you should check if the charger has a temperature gauge.