
Preventing Thermal Runaway in Energy Storage Systems (ESS)
From air transportation to electric vehicles and most recently “Hover Boards”, our industry is painfully aware of the over-discharge malfunctions associated with high-energy lithium-ion batteries, yet according to recent studies, nearly 70% of all Energy Storage Systems currently deployed are lithium-ion. Avoiding the pitfalls of utilizing greater energy density in larger installations is what will be discussed. Michelle will walk through the recent innovations from materials and process tracking in battery manufacturing to comprehensive control of cells in a fully deployed system. Incorporating lessons learned from recent failure investigations by the NTSB and FAA as well as new DoE mandates, Michelle will discuss how to achieve and in some areas surpass the new emerging safety certifications for a multi-megawatt energy storage system.
This webinar will focus on the following key topics:
• Making batteries safe or making safe batteries? (control & mitigation)
• Cell manufacture tracking, certification and response
– NTSB & DoE analysis and current situation
• Incorporating advanced battery management systems (BMS)
– Active cell dynamic balancing
– Cell replacement (hot-swapping)
– System reconfiguration
– Energy density scalability
Presenter
Michelle Klassen – VP of Business Development at Pathion, Inc.
Michelle Klassen is VP of Business Development for PATHION Inc. which manufactures high-performance, safe, and reliable Energy Storage Systems (ESS) for commercial markets ranging from 86 kilowatt-hours in stand-alone systems to over 1 megawatt-hour in containerized units. Prior to PATHION, as Vice President at ZeroBase Energy, she led the design and implementation of power systems and micro-grids for customers, including the US Department of Defense, Kenya Ministry of Energy and the L.A. Department of Water and Power.
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Energy Storage RTE Tutorial Course 1/3: What is Round Trip Efficiency (RTE)? Why is it Important? How Much Does it Cost?
In the first of this three-part webinar series, a definition of RTE will be presented along with simple system equations that are important to its understanding, determination and management. RTE for some popular battery systems i.e. Lead Acid, Lithium Ion, Vanadium Redox and Nickel Zinc will be computed as examples, and their variation with common variables such as rate, capacity variability & SOC swing will be discussed. The costs of Round Trip inefficiency can be significant, and are experienced by customers either in higher energy generating capital costs and/or higher operating expenses. The calculation of these higher costs will be reviewed, and there will be a discussion on the key industry variables that influence them. Different geographic and customer markets will be considered.
This webinar will focus on the following key topics:
• The Importance of RTE to battery selection decisions
• How does RTE impact CAPEX and/or OPEX for energy storage
• How is RTE defined and how can it be derived – comparison of different systems
• An introduction to ancillary equipment energy losses
Presenter
Dr. Halle Cheeseman – Founder/President at Energy Blues LLC
Dr. Halle Cheeseman earned a PhD in Electrochemistry & Corrosion from the University of Nottingham in UK, graduating in 1985. She has held several executive positions in the battery industry over the past 32 years, including Sr. VP of R&D at Spectrum Brands and VP of R&D at Exide Technologies. Her specific battery experience includes Lithium Ion, Zinc Air, Nickel Metal Hydride, Nickel Iron, Alkaline and Lead Acid, focusing on Consumer, Industrial, Automotive & Renewable Energy applications. In July 2017, Dr. Cheeseman founded Energy Blues LLC, an energy storage consulting cooperative comprising 20+ subject matter experts.
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Stability of Li7La3Zr2O12 Garnet Solid-State Electrolyte Against Metallic Lithium
Energy storage demands will require safer, cheaper and higher performance electrochemical energy storage. While the primary strategy for improving performance has focused on state-of-the-art Li-ion batteries, this work seeks to develop solid-state batteries employing metallic Li anode. Recently, the ceramic electrolyte, Li7La3Zr2O12 (LLZO) cubic garnet, has shown promise owing to its unique combination of properties such as high Li-ion conductivity and electrochemical stability. Generally, LLZO is synthesized through powder processing and sintering at high temperature to produce dense membrane. Processing of the ceramic materials produces internal and surface flaws which will inhibit lithium transport creating localized current density and control the stability against Li dendrite propagation. This presentation will discuss new improvement in methodology to evaluate the integrity of LLZO membrane.
This webinar will focus on the following key topics:
• Methodology to evaluate the integrity of LLZO by identifying the microstructural flaws and their impact on mechanical properties
• DC cycling, EIS, XPS will be shown to determine the reactions that govern the maximum current density
• Correlate the electrochemical stability and critical current density with defects in polycrystalline solid state LLZO electrolyte
Presenter
Asma Sharafi – PhD Student with Jeff Sakamoto at University of Michigan
Asma received her MS in Chemistry (material science) in 2013 at University of Georgia. Currently, she is a PhD student in Mechanical Engineering at University of Michigan under Jeff Sakamoto’s supervision. The primary focus of her research is on the development of new solid state electrolyte (SSE) with the garnet structure (Li7La3Zr2O12) that offer unprecedented safety and durability.
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