POSCO and Hyundai Motor join forces to develop next-generation electrical steel

South Korean steel company POSCO has announced the launch of a national research and development project with Hyundai Motor Company and eight other industrial, academic and research organizations to develop high-performance next-generation electrical steel sheets for electric vehicles and related motor technologies.

POSCO is leading the project, which includes Hyundai Motor Company, SL Corporation, Polepair Electric, RIST, Korea Institute of Industrial Technology (KITECH), Korea Institute of Automotive Technology (KATECH), Ulsan University, National University of Puken and the Korean Association for the Study of Metallic Materials (KOMERA).

The main focus is on high-silicon electrical steel sheets

With the support of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy of South Korea and under the direction of the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology Assessment (KEIT), the project aims to develop technologies for the production of 6.5 percent wide electrical steel sheets with silicon content and to test their effectiveness in electric vehicle drive motors.

Electrical steel sheets are a key material used in electric motors. According to POSCO, the higher silicon content reduces iron losses during high-speed rotation, increasing engine efficiency. The company noted that the increased silicon content also makes the material more brittle, creating problems in the production and processing of thin, wide sheets. As a result, the development of a standardized mass production process for high-silicon