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Why Shell’s oils and fluids are still vital in an electric car

“In many of these future road car systems, we’re still at the design feasibility stage, and it’s unclear where each OEM will go,” said Dobrowolski.

Ironically, given the green credentials of EVs, a switch to widespread direct cell cooling would increase the volume of hydrocarbons in each car.

“Depending on the size and output of the battery, the volume needed in each vehicle could be between something like nine to 15 liters of fluid,” said Dobrowski.

That said, the fluid is sealed inside the battery pack and designed to last the life of the vehicle, typically 15 years or 185,000 miles. It can also be recycled.

Being synthetic, Shell’s E-Fluids are hydrocarbon-based but produced from natural gas through the gas-to-liquid (GTL) process, rather than refined from crude oil.

A key advantage of synthetics is their lack of sulfur content, which is extremely important in electric motors, whose copper stator windings react adversely with sulfur.

Shell’s other main E-Fluid is for electric motors/transmissions, where Formula E is also accelerating development. The race motor speeds can reach 30,000rpm, whereas a road car’s motor maximum is more in the range of 10,000-20,000rpm, which quickens the learning process.

Moisture content is something Shell is learning about, too, since motors run at lower temperatures than engines. Although there are hot spots in a Formula E motor of around 180-190deg C, the lubricant itself doesn’t heat above 100deg C, which means too low a temperature to boil off excess water.

In a lighter-duty electric road car, the engine temperatures are even lower, in the 60-80deg C range.

“So we have to blend the base oil and additives to deal with very different usage: high instantaneous torque, a single gear and low temperatures,” explained Dobrowolski.

There’s also less volume of E-Fluid, about 4.5 liters versus 6 liters in a dual-clutch automatic transmission.

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