+44 208 520 2248
The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have been felt keenly across the global economy. Combining this with large shifts in geopolitical policy, every single industry has been impacted, and has been experiencing delays and problems with their supply chain. The US is entrenching an ever-deepening trade war with China and the UK has decided to leave the European Union. Therefore,the robustness of supply chains will become more critical than ever. …
The probability of an electric vehicle (EV) catching fire is significantly lower than that of an internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle. According to the Fatality Analysis Reporting System, between 1993 and 2013 in the US, fires occurred in 2.6% of EVs, and in 4.4% of ICE vehicles. However, over the last few years as EVs have become more prominent, there have been well-publicised issues with fire occurring in electric vehicles – with Tesla being the worst hit.
Risk is abundant in any motor vehicle – but it’s essential to understand the unique risks involved with manufacturing and operating EVs, and how they can be mitigated.
Here are some electric vehicle safety concerns around battery damage and fire risk and how they can be addressed. …
Mica is an incredibly versatile and flexible material. Due to its unique physical, electrical and thermal properties, it makes an ideal insulation material. Across the broad requirements of industry, there are billions of machines, components and products that need to be insulated – all requiring a slightly different approach, and slightly different material. Because mica is so versatile, it can be adapted into various applications through cutting, shaping and combining with other substances to create unique insulation solutions.
Here are 3 ways in which mica is commonly adapted for use in various applications. …
A vital component of our work as an insulation solutions provider is to help our customers innovate. As technologies in many industries change rapidly to uncover new capabilities, it’s essential that the new risks and challenges are assessed, particularly when it comes to insulation and deciding on which material or combination of materials will help to achieve the desired – and required – results. We are consistently working closely with customer and partner research and development (R&D) teams in order to help them navigate changing requirements and emerging innovations to help them make a better, safer and more efficient product. …
Thermal runaway is a significant risk present in batteries. It occurs due to a battery cell failure of some kind, occasionally as simple as the separator between the anode and the electrolyte breaking down. This generates an increase in temperature, creating a chain reaction in which more energy is released, causing the electrolyte to break down into flammable gasses. Once the separator melts, the cathode of the battery breaks down further fuelling the fire with oxygen, triggering an uncontrolled positive feedback loop, often leading to a destructive result. The risk of thermal runaway begins at 60°C and becomes extremely critical at 100°C. Once the process has begun, temperatures rise rapidly within milliseconds – creating temperatures of around 400°C. It is particularly prevalent in lithium-ion batteries. …
In our previous blog post, we examined in detail five thermal insulation materials and their physical and thermal properties. In this post, we’re going to get into official classifications for thermal insulation materials, their importance when it comes to selecting the right type of insulation and the applications of the materials in each classification.
Capacitors have an important role and function in a wide variety of applications. They are devices for storing electrical energy – preventing damage, information loss and filtering out unwanted frequencies. They are used in everything from microelectronic circuits to massive power systems.
An important feature of most capacitors is their dielectric component. Most capacitors have a dielectric spacer – a sheet of dielectric material between the two conducting plates, increasing its capacitance and improving the stability of the system. …
High temperature insulation is vital in many manufacturing applications such as continuous processing, where operating temperatures should be controlled to achieve maximum efficiency and consistency, and foundry and steel, where effective thermal insulation can help to extend the life of equipment and provide additional safety measures. …
When it comes to selecting the right insulation solution for an electrical application, it’s important to understand the dielectric capabilities and properties of the material or materials being used.
A dielectric material is one which is a poor conductor of electricity, but can support electrostatic fields. This means that if the material is exposed to an external electric field, the substance becomes polarized. This allows it to store electric charge, making it a poor conductor, but a good storage medium. …
At Elmelin, we have been working with mica as our chosen insulation solution for over 100 years. For us, the benefits of using mica as an insulator are very clear. But obviously, it’s not the only material out there with thermal and electrical insulative properties that is widely used for industrial insulation applications.
With that in mind, we’re going to compare mica-based insulation with 3 other common insulation materials in order to give you a clear view of its performance against the alternatives. …