Abstract
In response to requirements set by world governments working to reduce CO2 emissions, the rapid shift toward electrified vehicles by automobile companies is now fully acknowledged. Accelerating the introduction of electrified vehicles onto the auto markets has had varied effects on the automobile companies. This, combined with automatic driving and the introduction of AI in cars, is being termed the most drastic innovation in the industry over the past 100 years. Electrified vehicles have created significant improvements with regard to fuel economy using high efficiency motors and high capacity batteries, however the weight of these vehicles is seeing an increase under current changes. The weight of these vehicles must now be reduced in order to receive the benefits of electric, and we are looking to plastic materials to solve this issue. Until now, plastic materials were used mainly for the interior parts of vehicles however, with the flexibility of form plastics offer we are now also looking at application of plastic materials for electrified vehicles – not only for lightening up the weight but also for improving design. This paper gives an overview of the history of use of plastic materials in automobiles and provides an outlook for future possibilities. Lastly, the author makes reference to issues such as reduction of ASR from ELV.
