Synthetic vs. Real Driving Cycles: A Comparison of Electric Vehicle Battery Degradation

Automobile dependency and the inexorable proliferation of electric vehicles (EVs) compels accurate predictions of cycle life across multiple usage conditions and for multiple lithium-ion battery systems. Synthetic driving cycles have been essential in accumulating data on EV battery lifetimes. However, since battery deterioration is path-dependent, the representability of synthetic cycles must be questioned. Hence, this work compared three different synthetic driving cycles to real driving data in terms of mimicking actual EV battery degradation. It was found that the average current and charge capacity during discharge were important parameters in determining the appropriate synthetic profile, and traffic conditions have a significant impact on cell lifetimes. In addition, a stage of accelerated capacity fade was observed and shown to be induced by an increased loss of lithium inventory (LLI) resulting from irreversible Li plating. New metrics, the ratio of the loss of active material at the negative electrode (LAMNE) to the LLI and the plating threshold, were proposed as possible predictors for a stage of accelerated degradation. The results presented here demonstrated tracking properties, such as capacity loss and resistance increase, were insufficient in predicting cell lifetimes, supporting the adoption of metrics based on the analysis of degradation modes.