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For further details of this year's conference, visit the event website.
Please briefly explain your role, involvement, and experience with vehicle thermal management
Alex Leveau (AL): I lead a squad which looks after the thermal management concepts for EVs. We support the integration of units by looking at heat transfer from the source to the sink, whether it is the ambient or another consumer in the vehicle. This way, we aim to improve and better integrate heat management functions. We also generate ideas and detect innovations to bring them into production with the aim that they will be key differentiators over our competitors.
What is the top challenge facing your industry at present?
AL: On top of continuing the fast-paced improvement of vehicle attributes we have seen on BEVs since the beginning of their mass production, such as charging speed and efficiency, the per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) ban expected to come into effect later this decade will require a deep rework of the thermal management solutions we know today.
How would you say your industry has evolved over the past five years?
AL: We have seen a shift from exploration, and using a limited offer of components to a convergence of solutions (though still many different solutions depending on applications) and improved integration. This is thanks to availability of hardware with characteristics better suited to EV cooling. It will be interesting to see whether that trend is impacted by a breakthrough in battery technology or new refrigerants.
What developments are going on in your industry that may have an impact on the development of future thermal management systems and wider powertrain efficiencies?
AL: With the PFAS ban looming, the development of R744 (carbon dioxide), R290 (propane) and other refrigerants and climate system controls will be key to the vehicle’s attributes, cost and weight balance. Novel heat transfer solutions for batteries and drive units on the powertrain side and solutions to occupants’ comfort on the climate side will also facilitate thermal management integration and attributes delivery.
Why is it important for engineers and industry to come together at this event and share best practice?
AL: Thermal management is a broad field with diverse skills and expertise required to fully understand it. Being able to share and learn from others, especially when it comes to applications that use new approaches or innovations, is highly beneficial for everyone.
This year's Vehicle Thermal Management Systems Conference and Exhibition will return to the British Motor Museum in Warwick on 5-6 June 2024.
VTMS16 will explore the necessity and complexity of battery analysis through differing simulation techniques and offer a system engineering approach to balancing duration, durability, and immersive coolant technologies.
For further details of this year's conference, visit the event website.