Introduction of the Scheme [Electric Vehicle Mission (EV-Mission)]:
Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF), a statutory body of the Government of India, has been established with an aim to seed, fund, and coordinate, research and development across institutions in the country with specific focus on matters of national priorities, emerging frontiers and strategic research.

Mission for Advancement in High-impact Areas (MAHA) program of ANRF addresses priority-driven, solution-focused research in mission-mode that would catalyse multi-institutional, multi-disciplinary and multi-investigator collaboration to address scientific challenges and advance the frontiers of technology in key scientific areas. ANRF has identified Electric Vehicle (EV) Mobility as the first priority area of focus under MAHA program.

The objective of the EV-Mission is to promote research & development of Electric Vehicle (EV) adoption in India, fostering an ecosystem that enables self-reliance and global competitiveness. This involves research & development in some of the key EV components such as batteries, motors and controllers, power electronics, and related subsystems, chargers, grid interface to meet our current technological requirements on one side as well as doing cutting edge futuristic research to attain future global leadership, enhance domestic R&D capabilities, and position India as a hub for development of EV components thereby promoting Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India) and aligning with the goals of Viksit Bharat. The relevant approach is required to bridge the current gaps through targeted research with an aim of indigenisation, and value chain self-sufficiency as well as aiming global leadership by working on areas which have not yet succeeded elsewhere globally.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE CALL
India's commitment to achieving a net-zero emission target by 2070 and reducing carbon emissions by one billion tonnes by 2030 underscores the critical need for a transition to electric mobility. With the transportation sector being a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, electrification of road transport is vital. The spin-off from these technologies will also help the development of flanking transportation solutions such as those on water, rails, tubes and in air. Other than this, EVs are more cost-effective to operate, produce less noise pollution, use less energy, and are more amenable to automation, which paves the way for smart transportation. India aims to achieve 30% EV market share by 2030. The aforementioned plans necessitate India to develop indigenous, innovative, technically advanced, and economically viable components/systems for EVs that are also going to perform at optimal levels in the context of the Indian weather and traffic conditions.

Scientists all over the world are working on these challenges, and many new and innovative solutions are evolving every quarter. As these are areas attracting global interest relatively recently, with significant potential for private investment, there is enormous potential for Indian scientists to pursue socially useable, path-breaking research and deliver cutting-edge technology which are either not yet invented/ discovered in other countries or are in the initial stages of research.

Some of the major challenges identified for the widespread use of electric vehicles in the country are the high initial cost of vehicles, limited range, concerns about safety, limited power/speed/acceleration, the inadequacy of charging opportunities, and high charging time, as well as the usual inadequacies of newly developing areas- innovation, design, development, testing competencies, and resources. At present, the industry depends heavily on imported materials and EV components, and, in some cases, entire systems due to lack of raw material supply chain and domestic capabilities in technology and manufacturing.

This calls for definitive strategy and intervention in developing indigenous capabilities for long term sustainability and end-to-end value creation across the value chain. Indigenisation through R&D will also bring down the costs and help in evolving local supply chains that includes development and testing of battery components, other EV components and EV charging infrastructure.

The R&D directions for technology development in EV-Mission will focus on the three Technology Verticals:
(a) Tropical EV Batteries and Battery Cells,
(b) Power Electronics, Machines and Drives (PEMD),
(c) Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure.

The emphasis of the present call under ANRF is to support path breaking research and technological projects, which are critical for developing indigenous capabilities in the Indian eco-system to meet out current technological requirements and doing cutting edge advanced research. The suggested research program is expected to support academic institutions and research laboratories/centres in consortium mode to accelerate proof-of-concept to prototype development with sufficient evidence for absorption of the same by Industry and, from thereon, the market.

The proposals in consortia mode are invited under EV mission for establishing Electric Mobility Nodes (e-Nodes) in the country. An e-Node should be focused on at least one of the specified technology verticals. Each e-Node in a specific technology vertical will consist of about 3-4 academic institutions/R&D laboratories with provision for inclusion of startups/PSU/industry partners working in the respective domain. The Lead Principal Investigator (LPI) and PIs of these institutions will form an e-Node aligned with technology verticals and the e-Node will be located in the lead institution. The LPI will serve as the primary point of contact for coordination and cooperation among the other Principal Investigators (PIs) within each e-Node.

For more context, Proposers are requested to read through the following two documents from DST "www.dst.gov.in" and PSA Office "www.psa.gov.in" respectively.

The EV Mission will be centered around developing technology as well as capability and it is expected that the industry would be actively engaged right from the inception stage till prototypes/products are developed with clearly documented pathways for industrialisation where the targets are competitively achieved. The major scope of this Mission is envisaged to focus on the following, but not restricted to:

(i) Promote R&D on EV components: Develop an advanced, robust and inclusive R&D ecosystem that leads to technology development for EV components to be at the global cutting edge and reduce dependency on imports as well as costs. Development of indigenous capabilities in technologies for battery cell, motor, power electronic systems and charging infrastructure will be supported to boost the Indian industry to establish local supply chains and achieve global competitiveness in this domain.

(ii) Promote Research on EV materials: Develop innovative, advanced and sustainable cell chemistries and components for Battery Energy Storage that demonstrate energy densities and power densities that are at par or higher than current technologies while remaining affordable and synthesized from readily available, environmentally friendly basic materials. Highly efficient motors with low-loss stator and rotor materials, reduced or non-rare earth magnets, semiconductor materials for power conversion devices etc. suitable for Indian conditions. Green technologies from mining, ore processing and producing industry grade products/ components in environmentally friendly manner with low water consumption/less toxic solvents will be considered.

(iii) Enable collaborations: Establish collaboration with national and international partners for research, commercialization, and skill development.

To align with the national interest, preference will be given to developing technologies utilizing resources readily available in India facilitating indigenization and fostering a culture of innovation by encouraging collaborations between academic institutions, research laboratories, start-ups, and industries.

As a framework, the R&D activities of the mission will be carried out in cross-cutting research areas centred around joint Academia-R&D-industry consortia based on proven competency and experience of the team in related areas in developing technologies demonstrated through publications, intellectual property, projects executed, and industry interests. It is expected that apart from path breaking fundamental research, the mission should achieve outcome with TRL 5-7 as applicable. Consortia of higher TRL are also welcome. Functional prototypes of technologies at targeted TRL will have to be demonstrated, with, where successful, clearly documented pathways for competitive industrialisation. To promote impactful translational research, certain activities shall be taken up for the creation of R&D culture and competency, and also the sharing of R&D infrastructure centres will be encouraged.

The sections below describe broad R&D needs in each of the thrust area in EV development viz. battery, power electronics machines and drives, and EV charging infrastructure. The proposers are invited to consider these as guidelines and directional- and submit specific proposals with tangible and competitive outcomes.

The application targets shall focus on two and three wheelers, four wheeler passenger and light commercial vehicles, as well medium and heavy vehicles such trucks and buses.

The consortia shall focus on the following domains/sub-domains (but not restricted to) for R&D in EV Batteries:

1. R&D on Lithium Ion Battery (LIB) technology will be supported across the battery cell value chain: Cathode Active Materials (CAM) and Anode Active Materials (AAM) including cathodes with reduced Cobalt content, high Nickel Content, Lithium Manganese Iron Phosphate (LMFP), Lithium Nickel Manganese Oxide (LNMO) etc, cathode and anode active materials, innovative silicon-based and metal anode development, high voltage cathodes, and high- capacity anodes, surface engineering and material synthesis of anode and cathode materials for performance enhancement etc.; Electrolytes and Additives including non-flammable electrolytes, aqueous, ceramic solid electrolytes, semi solid electrolytes, polymer electrolytes, ionic liquids, heavily fluorinated systems; Copper and Aluminium foils; Electrode additives; new Separators; Binder including dry coating technology and aqueous solvent, novel fire suppressant materials etc. will be supported. The focus shall be indigenous supply chain for the components and the target shall be to achieve higher performance of cells in various terms targeting commercial specifications and competitiveness- as compared to current levels of products in or entering the market. Proposers are expected to submit proposals where new exploratory research are considered in TRL 2 to 4- which will help achieve new paradigms on Specific Energy, Energy Density, Specific Power, Power Density.
2. Beyond LIB chemistries, similar areas as above, for Sodium-Ion Batteries (SIB), Multi-valent ion Batteries, Solid-State Batteries (SSB), LIBs with Lithium-Sulphur and Lithium Metal chemistries, and Metal-air batteries shall also be supported.
3. R&D on all aspects of the cell fabrication (cylindrical/pouch/prismatic) process optimization, aiming to enhance cell performance to commercial levels in terms of energy and power density, fast charge-ability, durability, safety, etc. shall be supported. Development of novel in situ sensor technologies within a cell that can relay information on cell health during vehicle operation is encouraged.
4. Establishment of cell fabrication facility for demonstrating technology proof-of-concept: The facility will include roll-to-roll coaters, automated cell assembly, etc. and shall be capable of producing multi-layer pouch cells or cylindrical cells with at least 2-Ah capacity.
5. AI enabled discovery of Cell materials,
6. Highly accelerated battery testing mechanisms.

1. Battery characterization, modelling, and diagnostics: For applications such as battery performance prediction, battery management, battery passport, second life battery use, vehicle range and Remaining Useful Life (RUL) estimation, fault diagnosis, etc., in Indian road and climatic conditions; development of tools for ensuring battery safety (predicting thermal runaway/fire) and avoiding battery failure (rapid capacity loss).
2. Battery Management System: New Paradigm Algorithm Development for BMS that will offer higher Battery Life and/or Power and/or Depth of Discharge.
3. Battery Pack Design and Thermal Management System: Focused on low energy cooling for Indian ambient conditions, integrated cooling, emergency cooling, mechanical design, cell joining, thermal sensing, design of extreme form factor battery packs, cell assembly, maintenance etc.

1. Minimizing or substituting materials: Development of cell chemistries that require lower cobalt or nickel content may be considered.
2. Material recovery through recycling: Development of cost-effective , environment-friendly processes for collection and safe transportation, and extraction of valuable metals contained in the black mass.

The consortia shall focus on the following domains/sub-domains (but not restricted to) for R&D in PEMD:

1. Development of advanced indigenous technologies for EV motor variants such as Induction Motors, Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motors (PMSM), PM-assisted Synchronous Reluctance Motors (PMaSynRM), Axial Flux Motors (AFM) and Switched Reluctance Motors (SRM) that will offer superior efficiency, Specific Power and Power Density and/or significantly lower costs.
a. Development of materials for motor components such as rare earth and other materials for magnets, conductor and insulation material, electrical steel for lamination, etc. for reducing losses and facilitating efficient operation at widely varying speeds and operating conditions,
b. Advanced manufacturing techniques for motor winding, and adhesives for magnets,
c. Advanced sensing diagnostic and prognostic methods for improved durability of traction motors against degradation and failure due to faults such as eccentricity, winding faults, demagnetization faults, bearing faults, etc.,
d. Active, integrated and low-power thermal management, including new materials for Thermal Interfaces and packaging.
e. Replacement of Copper with Alternative Material or its alloy for Winding of Electric Motor
f. Research on Non-Rare Earth material of Permanent Magnet
g. Enhancing Efficiency in High-Speed Electric Vehicle Propulsion Systems through Motor Control Optimization
h. Design and Development of a High-Voltage DC Inverter (more than 800V) with Advanced Power Electronics and Control Technologies

1. Development of competitive SiC/GaN-based high power converters and their subsystems which offer Power Densities that are higher than current Global benchmark and that can withstand high temperatures and operate with low loss, suitable for multiphase motors,
1. component packaging, and high-frequency inverters for Dynamic Wireless Power Transfer (DWPT)- especially with Power Ratings higher than 50kW and Power Densities higher than current global benchmark,
2. High yield manufacturing process for GaN wide band gap (WBG) semiconductors for EV that improve upon the current Global State of the Art.
3. Nucleation and growth mechanisms in semiconductor material synthesis and manufacturability
4. Design and development of high voltage inverters in the range of 400V to 1500V DC,
5. Design and development of Bi-directional chargers and converters (with ratings higher than 100kW) for Vehicle-to-grid (V2G), Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) and Vehicle-to-home (V2H) applications,
6. Development of a distinctly competitive, modular converter architecture of inverter, DC-DC, and onboard chargers that can be deployed in different vehicle platforms, improved inverter control with in-service condition monitoring and health management,
7. Design and development of new paradigm thermal management systems for power electronics that will offer superior efficiencies or performances or safety as compared to current global benchmark.

1. Adaptive synchronized multi-winding power electronic drives for robust performance under degradation and incipient faults,
2. Fault tolerant drives for retaining minimum performance in limp home scenarios under specific failures,
3. Energy efficient regenerative antilock four quadrant motor drive strategies under various vehicle drive scenarios such as emergency braking, hill-descent, low-speed car-following, etc. in coordination with Battery Management System (BMS), Vehicle Control Unit (VCU), and mechanical brake subsystems,
4. Design and development of new paradigm thermal management system of motors that offer higher efficiencies or lower costs as compared to current Global Benchmark,

The consortia shall focus on the following domains/sub-domains (but not restricted to) for R&D in EV charging infrastructure:

1. Development of universal infrastructure socket and its standardization,
2. Design an adaptor to provide compatibility for connecting dominant non-standard sockets with type-6 or type-7 sockets,
3. Development of low-cost and lightweight charger to network communication protocol,
4. Validation and field trial of solid-state transformer-based power converter systems/architectures,
5. Battery swapping and associated computing and signal processing technologies of battery State-of- Health (SoH) and State-of-Charge (SoC) testing and monitoring, warranty and insurance compliance, etc.,

1. Design and development of high-power (~250kW) chargers using advanced features:
a. Solid-state transformer,
b. SiC-based high power bidirectional converters for direct connection to medium voltage grid,
2. Design and demonstration of functional prototypes of the high-power charging schemes like pantograph, and catenary. Technology development for pantograph and catenary charging schemes,
3. High power density Static wireless charging,
4. Economic study of high-power charging stations with integration of Renewable Energy (RE) and Battery Energy Storage System (BESS).

1. Study the effect of charging stations on the voltage profile, power quality, fault level, and stability of the grid. Role of charging stations as providers of ancillary services,
2. Design and development of charging stations including integration of renewables, urban planning, safety issues for battery storage,
3. Optimal operation of charging stations and energy pricing models,
4. Real-time monitoring and public advisory and assistance systems for vehicle charging,
5. Low voltage (up to 1500V) and high current cable development,

The specified targets should be considered as guiding benchmarks as this is a research-driven project, it may not be practical to assign target values for all performance parameters. In areas, where no specific target is provided, the research should aim for either state-of-the-art values or forward- looking estimates based on existing technological parameters.

• The e-Nodes will be supported in two tracks. In Track I, funds will be allocated for short term deliverables (for 3 years). Allocation of funds in Track II, in higher TRL (for another 2 years) will be based on the performance of the e-Nodes in terms of short term deliverables. The support will also be provided for combined tracks. Fundamental research is an integral part of both the tracks.
• ANRF will provide funding directly to the LPI of the each e-Node who will then disburse funds to the other PIs within the respective e-Node,
• The exact amount of funding given to each member of the e-Node will be decided by the ANRF,
• The disbursement of funds will be linked to the successful achievement of project milestones. These milestones act as indicators of progress and completion i.e. "Markers of progress and completion", showcasing how the e-Node is contributing to the overall objectives of the EVM,
• A maximum of ten postdoctoral fellows per e-Node will be supported.

The mission will establish multiple e-Nodes responsible for working in the three technology verticals:
(a) Tropical EV Battery and Battery Cells,
(b) Power Electronics, Machines and Drives (PEMD),
(c) Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure.

The multiple e-Nodes established under EV mission will have roles and responsibilities including but not limited to the following:
1. Generation of new/fundamental knowledge, technology development and skill enhancement in mandated areas.
2. Serve as a repository of research findings, and patents demonstrating cutting edge technologies.
3. Focus on translational research and technology development at various Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs). Ensure continued commitment of R&D team till goals are achieved.
4. Host product development, training activities, facilitate accelerated technology commercialization and offer market/business intelligence to mission projects.
5. Emphasize on Human Resource Development (HRD) and Entrepreneurship Development in in relevant research area.
6. Ensure Industry participation in technical and financial terms to meet the objectives of the mission.
7. Provide access to the state-of-the-art facilities established by e-Nodes to academia and industry for translational work, prototyping, testing, and demonstration.
8. Commitment of joint academia-R&D-industry teams to achieve technologies at TRL 5-7 through continued efforts till the goals are achieved. All organisations involved in e-Node would need to address issues of enabling the teams to work in mission modes.
9. The institutions and organisations involved in e-Node, shall enable R&D teams to gain access and exposure to world class facilities, equipment, R&D training in specific areas and collaborative support from world leading organisations.