Revealing hidden predicaments to lithium-ion battery dynamics for electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft

Summary

The future of urbanization engulfs the trident of electrification, increased accessibility, and enhanced productivity. Although electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircrafts provide cleaner, faster, and more efficient mobility solutions, they exhibit stringent phase-disparate demands on Li-ion batteries (LIBs). Through our mechanistic modeling framework, we demonstrate that eVTOL architecture, its mission constraints, and electrode design portray complex electrochemical implications in LIBs. Accrescent current densities distinctive to eVTOLs signify landing/balked phases as critical pathways to trigger thermal safety. During cold starts, we identify key limitations arising from the union of initial energy consumption and thermal convection from altitude variation. Cognizant of the mission-specific thermo-electrochemical interactions in LIBs, practical insights into the dynamic response of battery thermal management systems are discussed. The confluence of eVTOL power requirements with its concomitant battery response conveys mechanistic trade-offs pertinent to a spectrum of target applications, including passenger mobility, cargo, and emergency medical services.