Chronickels

Nickel news, views, commentary and insights

JANUARY 24 - 2024

Charging ahead: navigating the transforming landscape of the EV Market in the US

With global EV sales approaching 14 million cars in 2023 with a year-on-year growth rate of 35% it is clear that EVs are gaining acceptance rapidly.

BATTERIES ELECTRIC VEHICLES REGULATION
AUGUST 25 - 2023

Battery state of health, giving consumers confidence in used EVs for an affordable electric transition

In the drive towards a net-zero emission scenario, the market for Electric Vehicles has boomed over recent years. And this has resulted in a burgeoning used electric vehicle market.

BATTERIES ELECTRIC VEHICLES
JULY 12 - 2023

Impact of high temperature on EV batteries and options for users

This is the second article in a series on the impact of temperature on electric vehicles. Given the delivery waiting time for electric vehicles, you may be expecting to receive your EV in summer or next winter. This series has been developed to help you understand the implications of temperature.

BATTERIES ELECTRIC VEHICLES
JUNE 06 - 2023

How food standards save lives

World Food Safety Day on 7 June 2023 draws attention to food standards. Foodborne diseases affect 1 in 10 people worldwide each year, and food standards help us to ensure what we eat is safe.

STAINLESS STEEL HEALTH FOOD SAFETY
MAY 10 - 2023

Nickel – a VIP solution…

Vacuum insulated piping (VIP) makes it possible to transport liquefied gases at temperatures well below 0 °C to facilitate the energy transition

STAINLESS STEEL RENEWABLE ENERGY
DECEMBER 08 - 2022

Energy Crisis: can electric vehicles be game changers?

Just as the EV revolution was gearing up to become consumer driven, there was an increase in raw material prices, semi-conductor shortages and recently a steep rise in electricity prices. At a time of energy crisis, are EVs still a game changer?

SUSTAINABILITY BATTERIES RENEWABLE ENERGY
NOVEMBER 09 - 2022

Renewable energy shines with concentrated solar power

Reducing energy-related CO2 emissions is pivotal to limiting climate change, with the main drivers to bring about the required carbon reductions being renewable energy and energy efficiency. Concentrated solar power is one such renewable energy technology set to increase dramatically in the foreseeable future. It will need to provide energy at a competitive cost to outshine the competition.

SUSTAINABILITY RENEWABLE ENERGY RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT NICKEL MAGAZINE
OCTOBER 20 - 2022

Electric vehicles in winters: range related concerns and considerations

Given the delivery waiting time for electric vehicles, you may be expecting to receive your EV in winter or next summer. What are the implications of temperature on your vehicle?

BATTERIES ELECTRIC VEHICLES
SEPTEMBER 06 - 2022

300 series austenitic alloys – Checking all the boxes

Materials selection for any piece of equipment or a process system is rarely a simple task, unless you are exactly replicating something successful. Often engineers will have a checklist to help them narrow down the choices, eliminating groups of materials that are not suitable for various reasons. Austenitic 300 series stainless steels containing 7-35% nickel will have most if not all of the boxes checked for being suitable where a stainless steel is desired.

STAINLESS STEEL NICKEL ALLOYS TOOL STEEL NICKEL STEEL TECHNICAL HELP
JUNE 10 - 2022

300 series vs. ferritic stainless steel – Which one should I choose?

Each family of stainless steels has its strengths and weaknesses. Ferritic stainless steels have useful properties – a lower rate of thermal expansion, higher thermal conductivity, strong ferromagnetism and very high resistance to chloride stress corrosion cracking (SCC). When looking at selecting any alloys, it is important to consider all the factors for successful usage.

NICKEL ALLOYS STAINLESS STEEL NICKEL STEEL
JUNE 01 - 2022

The new San Giorgio bridge: stronger and more durable

Awareness about robustness and durability of bridge design has grown since Morandi’s time. The new San Giorgio Bridge (its successor) in Genoa was designed by Renzo Piano and inaugurated in 2020.

NICKEL MAGAZINE NICKEL STEEL STAINLESS STEEL ARCHITECTURE, BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION
MAY 17 - 2022

300 series vs. duplex stainless steel – Which one should I choose?

The duplex alloys are “problem-solving alloys” for good reason, they have been successfully used in many places where carbon steels and standard austenitic alloys have failed. Just like with the austenitic family, there are many different duplex alloys to choose from, with corrosion resistance varying from moderate with the lean duplex alloys to very high with the superduplex alloys.

NICKEL ALLOYS STAINLESS STEEL NICKEL STEEL
APRIL 06 - 2022

300 vs 200 series stainless steels - Which alternative suits?

The selection of an alloy should be guided by careful examination of the needs of the application. Before making a switch, it’s important to fully investigate an alloy’s strengths, weaknesses and applicability to your structure.

NICKEL ALLOYS NICKEL STEEL STAINLESS STEEL
APRIL 04 - 2022

What differentiates China’s EV market from the others?

In 2021, China recorded the strongest growth in the EV market with around 3.2 million EVs sold. This was an increase of 2 million EV units compared to 2020 which was more than the combined increase of all other regions taken together.

BATTERIES ELECTRIC VEHICLES CHINA RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT
JANUARY 27 - 2022

Mining electronics waste

Think of the largest cruise ship. Then imagine how much it weighs – just over 100,000 tonnes, in fact. Now think about 500 of those ships, and what they weigh. That is the staggering amount of new electronic waste that we generate every year.

SUSTAINABILITY BATTERIES RESOURCES AND RESERVES RECYCLING RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT RAW MATERIALS
DECEMBER 07 - 2021

Electric trucks and buses – no longer second fiddle to electric cars

Electrification of light-duty vehicles is trending in many parts of the world and is on track to become a consumer driven phenomenon but let’s not forget the heavy-duty vehicles such as trucks and buses.

BATTERIES ELECTRIC VEHICLES RENEWABLE ENERGY RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT
NOVEMBER 16 - 2021

Stainless steel: a lifetime of savings

While it may require an initial higher investment when compared with other materials, stainless steel’s unique properties deliver long-term performance and economic benefits including minimum downtime, reduced maintenance costs and reduced environmental impacts.

LIFE CYCLE COSTING STAINLESS STEEL ARCHITECTURE, BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION SUSTAINABILITY RECYCLING
SEPTEMBER 23 - 2021

Wind and water - Nickel in clean energy

Even small quantities of nickel in an application can make a big difference to successful deployment.

NICKEL ALLOYS STAINLESS STEEL WATER SUSTAINABILITY SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS BATTERIES RENEWABLE ENERGY
JULY 13 - 2021

Leading the charge

Charging Infrastructure is the backbone of the EV revolution. Parul Chhabra explains how the transformation in road transportation brought about by a shift towards E-mobility is causing pathbreaking changes along the value chain.

BATTERIES ELECTRIC VEHICLES
MARCH 05 - 2021

Electric vehicle safety : concerns and considerations

As electric vehicles (EVs) trend from being niche to mass scale and the lines between EVs and their combustion engine (ICE) counterparts get blurred in terms of usability, consumers, automakers, governments and fire departments continue to have some apprehensions.

BATTERIES ELECTRIC VEHICLES RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT
DECEMBER 11 - 2020

The shift from pump to plug - Consumer readiness and EVs

Parul Chhabra argues that attaining mass scale potential of electric vehicles will be determined by satisfying consumer concerns which go beyond pro-environment government policies.

BATTERIES ELECTRIC VEHICLES
AUGUST 21 - 2020

Headwinds and tailwinds facing EVs

Although market analysts believe that low oil prices will not derail the shift that has started towards clean mobility, the automobile sector including EVs has not been immune to the impact of Covid-19.

BATTERIES ELECTRIC VEHICLES
MAY 06 - 2020

Food safety: why stainless steel is a vital ingredient

Food safety starts with rigorous hygiene, and nickel-containing stainless steels are the superior, reliable standard at every link of the food chain.

STAINLESS STEEL SUSTAINABILITY SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS FOOD SAFETY HEALTH