THOR

At ERIS we have asked Maitane 2 questions:

What is THOR about?

Maitane: “Today batteries are a key technology, and in the future they will be increasingly vital for several reasons. Challenges are related to the energy and mobility of continuously growing population and urbanization, with focus on renewable energies as an alternative to fossil fuel.  To curb global warming a global demand for greener solutions is expanding. Thus, the global demand for battery is therefore expected to significantly increase by 2030: from 200 GWh/year in 2019 to 1.200. This large increase mainly comes from the electrification of transport, which will represent 86% of the market demand in 2030. Thus, key to THOR is the battery development acceleration through the realization of new digital tools. This is also one of the main objectives of the European program Battery 2030+.Besides, THOR wants to contribute-as expected and in line with several international initiatives- to reduce the number of experiments in battery research by a factor of 3.”

Why is THOR important for VUB?

Maitane: Thus, the battery community will benefit from THOR’s outputs at mid-term via the existing network of RTOs and potential early adopters, and at long term with enhanced functionalities. It will contribute to the expected outcomes and wider impacts via sharing of the models, the Digital Twin and associated methodologies with relevant target groups, using specific means of communication and dissemination, so that the results can be easily spread across the entire European battery industry. THOR will also contribute to ensure European excellence by facilitating optimization of battery packs to meet customer specifications faster and without extra-cost (better balancing efforts vs needs, and guide toward cheapest chemistries while answering performance and safety requirements).”

AIM

Acceleration of growth of the battery sector is primordial in decarbonizing our economy as batteries play a vital role not only in making our mobility sustainable but also in increasing the uptake of renewable energies. Growth and particularly innovation in this sector are predominantly hindered by costly and time-consuming test protocols and methods that require large number of samples and sophisticated infrastructure. A battery concept generated in 2023 may at best reach the production stage in 2032 as performance, ageing and safety characteristics of the design must be assessed through a lengthy trial-and-error based physical testing. THOR aims to shorten this timeframe, diminish the number of physical tests and nurture innovation in battery conception by developing a virtual tool - a Digital Twin that simulates battery behaviour. The project will target mobility and stationary applications and will focus on commonly used battery chemistries (representing 60% market share before 2030).

METHODOLOGY

Through an interdisciplinary approach involving experimentalists and modelling experts, 3 independent physics-based models for performance, lifetime and safety will be developed. The 3 models will then be combined and optimized using AI based approach to form a holistic digital twin of cell, module and pack. The digital twin will be accessible to the end-users through an efficient, user-friendly interface. THOR’s consortium covering the entire battery value chain will ensure that the project responds to the needs of battery industries (4 industrial partners including cell/ battery manufacturers and end-users) while enriching knowledge of the research community (3 research and technical organizations). 

IMPACT

Ease-of-use, cost-effectiveness, rapidity and adaptability of the Digital Twin will be demonstrated by end-users (research and technical organizations). In addition, the consortium aims to answer two requirements of the battery community: data harmonization and standardization of methodologies through the project.