Speeding up battery tests in Europe: the role of the digital twin in the THOR European project

From the industrial to the automotive sector right up to next-gen wearable medical devices: there are many areas of application where the electric transition, led by batteries, is shaping the future of the market. The development of these technologies requires a high degree of technological progress which, at European level, means the implementation of shared projects, consortia and synergies between public and private sectors, promoted by the European Union through specific funds and instruments.

The THOR European project, as part of the European Union’s framework programme for research and innovation known as Horizon Europe, fits into this context of cooperation, with the goal of making the European value chain for batteries quicker and more streamlined, encouraging innovation which is all too often hampered by expensive and time-consuming test protocols that slow down the release of next-gen batteries onto the market.

Cutting-edge methodologies to speed up battery tests

Reducing the number of physical tests and promoting innovation in battery design in Europe is the challenge behind the THOR European Project.

This project, officially launched in June 2023, sees Flash Battery as one of its leading figures, along with a network of 8 other partners from 6 EU countries, who will work side by side for 48 months to accelerate the growth of the European battery industry.

In fact, European technological innovation in this sector does not always manage to keep up with swiftly evolving demand, as it is hampered by very expensive battery test protocols in terms of time and money, which make their development and swift release onto the market difficult, penalising competitiveness.

These highly complex test procedures actually require the use of a large number of samples and sophisticated infrastructures to be carried out.

To give a practical example, a battery prototype developed in 2023 might only reach the production stage in 2032, as the performance, ageing and safety characteristics of the battery designed must be evaluated and studied through very lengthy trial-and-error tests.

The goal of the THOR European project is to facilitate the development of next-gen European batteries, speeding up testing processes and reducing the amount of physical tests, thanks to the development of a virtual tool, known as a Digital Twin, which uses artificial intelligence to simulate battery behaviour, running accurate predictive forecasts for the performance of the battery cell, module and pack.

 The 5 objectives of the highly innovative THOR project

The THOR European project is driven by ambitious goals. For four years running, the 9 consortium partners will pool their technical and technological know-how and expertise in the fields of tests, modelling and artificial intelligence to develop new predictive testing methodologies.

By using a highly predictive holistic digital twin which simulates the behaviour of battery cells, modules and entire packs, THOR aims to increase the competitiveness of the European battery industry, reducing times and the number of tests required to release new batteries onto the market, with subsequent lower costs and improved performance, life-cycles and, of course, overall safety for battery systems.

The THOR project has set itself 5 areas of work to have an innovative impact:

1. Industrial: by reducing production costs, making the final price of batteries more affordable.

2. Scientific: thanks to improved understanding of battery mechanisms and materials, through the development of research in the sector.

1. Economic: creating new business opportunities.
2. Societal: motivating younger generations to study electrochemistry and take part in battery R&D.
3. Regulatory: promoting acceptance of virtual tests as part of the certification process, improving regulation of the sector.

Three models to assess the performance of the battery cell, module and pack

By using an interdisciplinary approach involving modelling experts and experimenters, three independent physical models will be developed to study performance, ageing and the safety system at the level of the battery cell, module and pack.

The models will cover various malfunction scenarios, both thermal and electrical, and will be based on cell parameters from a series of tests, allowing each model to be replicated in batteries with different chemistries.

The objective will mainly be to develop models with high predictive capacities in order to provide a better understanding of the dangers to increase safety and of the battery’s ageing mechanisms.

The development of a digital twin to speed up the battery development process

The models will then be combined and optimised with an approach based on artificial intelligence to create a holistic digital twin of the cell, module and pack.

This virtual representation will help provide accurate information in terms of performance and safety, allowing the implementation of ad hoc maintenance programmes. Thanks to all the data collected in the field, the digital twin will then be able to automatically generate batteries with the perfect performance, according to the parameters studied. The consequently improved design will help increase the lifespan, reliability and safety of batteries, reducing operating costs, machine downtime and scheduled battery replacements, making a positive impact on the entire supply chain.

This in turn will lead to a reduction in insurance and warranty costs, consequently increasing consumer confidence, with the long-term goal of facilitating the electrification of an ever-growing number of applications.

Flash Battery’s over ten years of experience in the battery sector serving Europe

Flash Battery’s participation in the THOR collaborative project is driven by its goal of actively contributing to European research and development in the battery sector, offering its over ten years of experience in the design and production of lithium batteries for industrial machinery and electric vehicles, where artificial intelligence now plays a very important role.

In particular, thanks to its extensive experience in the field of predictive maintenance for batteries, the Flash Battery R&D team will help standardise any methodologies produced by the consortium, validating the final solutions developed by providing a specific demonstrator and batteries for the purpose of benchmarking, while supplying aggregate data collected over time. We will also be in charge of leading a working group set up to demonstrate the potential of the digital twin and to assess its impact on the entire battery development process, including any tests.

Exactly one year on from the launch of the THOR project, on 18 and 19 June 2024, at the THOR General Assembly, which brought together all the consortium’s partners in order to review the progress of the work and the future prospects for the evolution of the technologies developed, Flash Battery presented several alternative designs for ad hoc developed battery packs and shared with the partners the results of the thermal characterisation and FEM analysis (Finite Element Method), which are essential for identifying the prototype solutions that will be developed over the next few months on the project.