| |SEPTEMBER 202219In a vast market like India, where 90 percent of people are commuting by two-wheelers, three-wheelers and buses, the outlook for these sectors remains very strongcombustion engines, addressing increasing concerns about toxic air pollution and this policy has also helped in favor of promoting electric vehicles as they do not emit pollution.Kerala's state EV policy offers another bold measure - the proposal to give commercial permits only to E-3Ws.The Karnataka state has been a pioneer in introducing Electric Vehicle Policy and Scrapping Policy. Cities like Gulbarga have inserted a clause in the RC book that an electric vehicle doesn't need a permit to ply within the city limits. Bangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited (BESCOM) had already installed 126 charging stations and these are going to be operationalized shortly at 82 locations across the city of Bangalore. Using these chargers, 300 vehicles can be charged at a single time.Among these charging stations, 20 are fast chargers. There is a proposal to give a free license to any entrepreneur to install a charging station on his property. Similar charging facilities could be set up in residential apartments and commercial complexes. A suitable app can help users to identify charging stations as well as battery swapping locations. "I expect almost 30-40 percent three-wheelers in the country to be electric in 7-8 years. The electric three-wheelers offer the lowest cost of transportation, with e-commerce delivery coming in and a higher need for last-mile connectivity solution", says Sulajja Firodia Motwani. The recent developments in the electric three-wheeler market have introduced batteries with improved specifications that are said to be at the heart of any electric three-wheeler. These advancements in batteries are expected to increase the performance and range of electric vehicles.Comfort, lower travel cost than conventional three-wheelers, and no harmful effects on the environment are the prominent drivers of electric three-wheeler adoption in the country. The adoption of electric three-wheelers is expected to increase the physical and social mobility of ordinary people.One of the major challenges that are hindering the growth of the Electric vehicle sector is the pandemic situation. Another reason is the distance range offered by the electric vehicles being one of the most important reasons that users are still a bit hesitant to prefer electric three-wheelers over ICE (Internal Combustion Vehicles) three-wheelers. However, government bodies are working with manufacturers to provide the necessary charging infrastructure network. COVID impact the sudden onset of the pandemic has posed a significant threat to India's electric three-wheeler market as the production of vehicles has been hampered as a result of the lockdown. For a market that is trying to strengthen its position in the industry, COVID-19 came as a severe blow. However, as per the industry experts the Electric Vehicle three-wheeler market will recover swiftly from COVID-19 setback when compared to their ICE counterparts and their outlook remains strong in the medium term. As per Electric Vehicle market forecast by Frost and Sullivan, e-rickshaws, e-autos and e-two wheelers are the most promising segments for electrification in India and are expected to account for over four-million units by 2025. Investing in an electric three-wheeler is likely to aid in the preservation of air quality and the reduction of health risks in the society. Recently, a `Switch Delhi' campaign was launched by the government of Delhi for promoting electric vehicles in the city. Additionally, after the implementation of the Delhi EV policy in August 2020, three-wheelers have become the most common Electric Vehicle segment in the city. One of the major future trends that are expected to aid the improvement of the 3-wheeled electric vehicles is the aerodynamic design that is to be implemented. Improvement in aerodynamics of Electric three-wheelers External aerodynamics is also becoming increasingly important in the shift from fossil fuel vehicles to electric vehicles. In the context of electrification of vehicles, the drag force is an important factor to be considered as it impacts the operating costs of the vehicles, sizing of the drive train and the range of the vehicle before recharge. Reducing drag force is important even for relatively slower speed electric vehicles and if not optimized, it can have significant impact on cost and performance. Therefore, design improvements through external aerodynamics simulations of drag resistance using CFD (contract for difference) is a necessity for all electric vehicles. The conclusions derived from the research done by a leading electric vehicle manufacturing company show the following. Estimating the performance parameters related to external aerodynamics by CFD during vehicle development can yield significant benefits even for relatively slow vehicles.Design improvements to the body shape based on external aerodynamics can help reduce drag, reduce power consumption and improve range. This is especially important for electric vehicles.The new CFD analysis method gives an opportunity to perform external aerodynamics CFD analysis at very low cost and which is adequately accurate. In this arrangement, multiple CFD analysis iterations of external shapes are possible within a short timeframe. The current market for Electric Vehicles though facing a short term pressure due to COVID times, experts agree that the scope for electric vehicles, especially three wheeler segments is going to widen with time.
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