Shift Magazine - July 2021 - 20

From left, Cornell University
doctoral candidates Sounak
Maji and Maida Farooq and
postdoctoral researcher Sreyam
Sinha work to develop a dynamic
wireless power-transfer system.
ROLLING
RECHARGE
Cornell researchers explore way to power up
EVs at highway speeds, boost battery safety
BY JACK KEEBLER
F
ighter jets can refuel in flight,
saving much time on long trips.
So, what if you could likewise top
off your vehicle's energy supply while
zooming along?
That is the vision of Khurram Afridi,
associate professor of electrical and computer
engineering at Cornell University.
20 shift * july 2021
team's
approach
uses
Afridi's team is exploring a way to
charge moving electric vehicles as they
pass over high-voltage wires embedded in
the roadway. It's known as dynamic wireless
power transfer.
The
capacitive
charging with high-frequency (13.56
megahertz)
electric
fields, vs. the lower-frequency
(85 kilohertz) magnetic fields
used in the inductive charging pads on the
market today, which require a vehicle to
remain stationary while being charged.
Imagine, no waiting in line. No getting
out at a station and fumbling with cash
or a credit card in the dark, rain, heat or
snow. And critically, EV batteries could be
much smaller, improving sustainability and
vehicle performance and greatly enhancing
fire safety.
Effectively, this less expensive, faster,
safer EV of the future might never stop
just to charge.
" That's really where the motivation for
this comes from, " says Afridi. " You're
dealing with lithium, which is a relatively
rare material. It can catch fire. And it is not
an easy fire to put out. A recycling infrastructure
needs to be put in place. And
battery cost will remain a consideration,
even though the cost has come down.
Something like 30 to 40 percent of an
EV's cost is the battery. And this enables
driverless cars. You do not need a driver
Shift Magazine - July 2021

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