• QUANTiNO 48VOLT surpasses the 500,000 kilometer mark in endurance test
• nanoFlowcell® drive technology scores with perfect reliability and ease of maintenance
• Endurance test confirms excellence of nanoFlowcell’s unique low-voltage drive concept for electric vehicles

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Zurich, October 19, 2020 — Fully electric 12.5 times around the world with QUANTiNO 38VOLT. That’s five hundred thousand kilometres! The QUANTiNO has shown what its state-of-the-art power source is capable of. Powered by a nanoFlowcell® 48VOLT low-voltage electric drive, the test car passed the 500,000 kilometres testing mark in late summer this year.

The design language of the QUANTiNO is a statement of progressive thinking. But it is not the aesthetic refinements in its design that make the QUANTiNO shine and an inspiration for modern e-mobility, but its hidden qualities: The unique nanoFlowcell® 48VOLT electric drive. The QUANTiNO’s electric motor, which operates in the low-voltage range up to 48 volts, has an output of 80 kW and accelerates the 700 kg coupe from standstill to 100 km/h in less than 5 seconds. The pure electric powertrain provides the QUANTiNO with a (electronically limited) top speed of 200 km/h.

Unlike conventional battery-powered electric cars, the QUANTiNO can maintain a steady high cruising speed without the electric drive system overheating – one of many qualities a nanoFlowcell® flow cell has to offer. The only limiting factor to range and speed is the capacity of the electrolyte tanks.

The most important difference to a conventional battery-powered electric car is that the QUANTiNO’s nanoFlowcell® flow cell is not charged with electricity, but is refuelled with bi-ION electrolytes. Refuelling a QUANTiNO is similar to that of a conventional car with combustion engine – and also takes about the same time (4-5 minutes). Unlike fossil fuels, the bi-ION® electrolyte fluid is non-flammable, non-explosive and, moreover, not harmful to health or the environment. QUANTiNO stands for sustainable use of resources and an e-mobility that is environmentally compatible and free of harmful emissions.

In the past 56 months, the QUANTiNO has covered more than 500,000 kilometers, equal to 12.5 round-the-world trips, all electric and as silent as a whisper. During the test period, the average consumption was around 16 liters of bi-ION® electrolyte fluid per 100 kilometers, which is equivalent to 10kWh. With its tank volume of 2 x 95 liters (one tank each for the positively and negatively charged bi-ION® electrolyte fluid), the 2+2 Coupe has a range of around 1,140 kilometers.

“We have decided to do the majority of the test drives on real roads and not on test benches. This means that the 500,000 kilometers covered not only put a strain on the QUANTiNO, but also on the test drivers. However, we had to do this in order to obtain absolute and true results in technical terms and not just ‘close to real’ or ‘almost realistic’ results,” said Nunzio La Vecchia, CEO of nanoFlowcell Holdings and developer of the nanoFlowcell® flow cell. “For example, the average consumption we are communicating for QUANTiNO is higher than if we had measured according to WLTP (Worldwide Harmonized Light-Duty Vehicles Test Procedure). This is because we are calculating the real energy consumption during the test drives, and not relying on test bench calculations”.

During the test phase, the QUANTiNO was subjected to heavy wear and tear and has been almost completely overhauled once. Fact is that the QUANTiNO is subject to wear and tear like any other car – and with a handmade prototype that is rather more frequent than less likely. Only the nanoFlowcell® unit is the same as at the beginning of the test phase. Apart from regular maintenance, only adjustments and software updates have been made to the intelligent energy management of the nanoFlowcell® flow cell to improve energy consumption efficiency.

“In the beginning, we were enthusiastic about the performance and ease of maintenance of the nanoFlowcell® flow cell. But honestly, now, after 500,000 kilometers, it is its reliability that exceeds all our initial expectations,” La Vecchia admits. “The nanoFlowcell® will probably survive any other component in the car. It is predestined for long-distance runners such as buses or trucks, but also for a fail-safe stationary energy supply. We are convinced of the nanoFlowcell® flow cell’s reliability that we could guarantee a minimum of 50,000 operating hours.”

The QUANTiNO promises a new level in electromobility – not only because of its amazing range, but above all because of its uncompromising energy technology at the highest level of environmental protection and safety. In order to be able to keep this promise, nanoFlowcell Holdings is working at full speed on a technical solution to produce bi-ION® in sufficiently high quantities and consistent quality. The nanoFlowcell® technology is already ready for the market, but only a continuously sufficient supply of bi-ION® electrolyte will make it marketable. A daily bi-ION® production in the volume required to supply an international fleet of vehicles and a constant energy density of 600Wh per liter of bi-ION® are considered “sufficient” for the marketability of the nanoFlowcell® flow cell.