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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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Advancing Mining Processes to Make Better Materials for Use in Lithium Ion Batteries
American Manganese Inc has developed a low-cost, environmentally friendly hydrometallurgical process to recover manganese (Mn) from lower grade resources. American Manganese has applied for a patent for their hydrometallurgical process that produces electrolytic manganese metal with low energy and water consumption. American Manganese commissioned R&D contractor, Kemetco Research Inc to determine uses of Artillery Peak manganese resource material to generate high value alternative products. Chemical manganese dioxide (CMD) and lithiated manganese oxide (LixMn2O4) for use in rechargeable batteries were the areas researched.
The research was successful in producing CMD from Artillery Peak resource material with low cation impurities and avoiding processing steps that are known to introduce metallic impurities in the final product. Cation impurities cause capacity fade, whereas metallic impurities are known to cause catastrophic failures (such as fire and explosions) in lithium ion batteries. Working rechargeable lithium ion coin cell battery prototypes were produced from the CMD material.
This webinar will focus on the following key topics:
• Catastrophic failure of Li Ion batteries caused by metallic impurities that may be introduced from the mining of raw materials
• Conventional mining process to recover MnO2 used to make LiMn2O4
• Research on a new mining process that avoids steps known to introduce metallic impurities to recover MnO2 used to make LiMn2O4
Presenter
Norman Chow – President – Kemetco Research, Inc.
Norman earned a B.A.Sc. and M.A.Sc. in Metals and Materials Engineering from University of British Columbia. He is a Registered Professional Engineer (P. Eng.) in British Columbia. He has over 15 years of technology development and contract research experience. He is the President of Kemetco Research Inc., which he formed after acquiring the Industrial Process Division of BC Research Inc. BC Research had been in operation for over 60 years as an R&D contractor.
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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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Energy Storage RTE Tutorial Course 2/3: Ampere-Hour (Ah) RTE and Voltage Polarization Energy Losses
Many aqueous systems have water electrolysis to contend with, and above 70-80% SOC, RTE losses from this competing reaction can be significant. Management of these losses has been evolving for decades, and there are now tried and tested methods mostly related to charging algorithms & partial state of charge (pSOC) cycling. These methods will be reviewed. Relevant for every battery chemistry, Cell Voltage factors, will be separated into eight different components, four each, for the cathode and anode. These will be presented & described. The variables that affect them will be reviewed, including the effects of age & cycling and methods for their ongoing measurement. Techniques to reduce and mitigate polarization will be detailed & possible benefits will be quantified in terms of RTE & cost for different scenarios.
This webinar will focus on the following key topics:
• Ah Efficiency losses in aqueous systems
• Types of Voltage Polarization losses for all systems
• Strategies and plans for reducing & mitigating efficiency losses
• Improvement potential for different systems
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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