Sara Bradford article:
frost.com
Valence Technology: Powering Up the Future... Round Two
By Sara Bradford, Industry Manager
Valence Technology is a leader in the development and commercialization of Saphion technology and lithium-ion polymer rechargeable batteries. At the DEMO 2002 conference, Valence unveiled its first end-user product, the N-Charge Power System. This unique product delivers up to five days of non-stop cell phone talk time or 10 hours of continuous notebook use. The N-Charge also powers/charges multiple portable devices simultaneously, through high and low power ports. N-Charge uses the Saphion technology, which is an environment-friendly and safe phosphate technology.
This dynamic company is at it again. At the DEMO 2003, Valence unveiled its first prototype lithium-ion battery system for kilowatt and megawatt applications. The K-Charge Power System combines a powerful punch of energy with enhanced safety performance and importantly, environment friendly and low maintenance.
The K-Charge Power System
Similar to the N-Charge system, Valence has utilized the same chemistry from the building block of its Saphion chemistry. The benefits of this chemistry are that it preserves the high energy density of lithium-ion, besides having an element of safety that is currently not available in competing lithium-ion solutions. The technology enables the company to scale to larger format applications such as automotive, utility, and telecom applications.
K-Charge System Performance
Operating Voltage 24 V / 48 V
Energy 2.87 kWh
Cycle Life >2000 Cycles (80% Depth of Discharge)
Operating Temperature -20 ~ 60 Degrees Celsius (-4 ~ 140 Degrees Fahrenheit)
Dimensions 546 mm x 295 mm x 87.4 mm (21.5 in. x 11.61 in. x 3.44 in.)
Weight 27.2 kg (60 Lb)
Source: Valence Technology, Inc.
Technology Comparison
Specific Energy (Wh/kg) Energy Density (Wh/l) Rack Energy Density (Wh/U)
Valence K-Charge System 105 200 1435
Lithium Metal Polymer 117 156 1107
NiMH 70 170 -
VRLA 29 89 690
NiCD 50 75 -
Source: Valence Technology, Inc.
Applications
The K-Charge Power System represents Valence’s first product in the large format stage. At this time in the product development, target market applications include telecommunications, vehicular, utility, or industrial market spaces such as large utilities, data centers, and enterprise solutions. In each of those various market spaces, Valence is actively cultivating agreements with customers.
On the telecommunication side, Valence is actively engaged with Tyco Electronics. Tyco has produced a majority of the design that has been implemented into K-Charge product. From the concept stage through to the prototype stage, Valence has been working conjointly with Tyco on the K-Charge system.
At this stage in the development, the K-Charge has a telecommunications angle. However, the technology is extremely flexible, particularly in terms of form-factor. The product is well placed to progress into other industries such as automotive, for example.
Agreement with Tyco Electronics
Tyco has been providing the expertise in the telecommunications industry for the K-Charge design. The company participated in the design review for the product’s internal circuitry. However, the full system design was completed by Valence. Tyco will also help with system integration when the K-Charge product is fully installed in Tyco’s telecommunication cabinets.
Telecommunication Applications - Primary Focus
The K-Charge system packs more power punch in half the footprint size than traditional back-up power systems for network telecommunication applications. The product communicates actively with controllers in the cabinet. At this time, there will be three or four different communication protocols pertaining to the communication between the controllers and the battery.
The first protocol used will be the RS485. It is a two-wire communication protocol that Tyco uses to allow controllers to interact with the Valence batteries. Tyco will assist in the integration of RS485 communications in its cabinets. This protocol is extremely important. For most part, the batteries available today for this application (lead acid batteries) are “dumb” batteries. They cannot communicate the specific battery status to controllers or any other equipment. The Valence batteries can communicate their state of health and eventually will be able to run diagnostic tests on the batteries and provide that information back to a controller.
In other words, the possibility exists that the personnel responsible for continually checking on the state of battery health can be surpassed. With the K-Charge technology, it is feasible that a user could pull the technology statistics up for diagnostic purposes and feed the information back to the central office without ever having to make a service call.
Additionally, the system does not have a torque down connector similar to the traditional lead acid battery. Alternatively, it is a quick connect that Valence has engineered with Tyco. This quick connect allows for the following advantages:
No spillage associated with the battery
No hydrogen gas evolution - monitoring levels and vents
No battery pans are required
Can be integrated into a standard 21-inch power communications rack system
Single unit conforms to the standard 1.75 inches with required screw heights to make rack mounting seamless
Price Comparison - LA versus Valence’s Saphion Technology
Costs of the K-Charge energy system will vary according to the system developed. The system would cost approximately $0.45 per watt-hour, or $450 per kilowatt-hour at maturity. The lead acid battery has been in the industry for 100 years, so this chemistry has an evident price advantage. In terms of both dollars and watt hours, there will be very little reduction in the dollar terms and very little increase in watt hour terms for the lead acid chemistry.
On the other hand, the lithium chemistry has been active in the market for only approximately 10 years. As it is a relatively new chemistry, lithium has the capability to have a life cycle two to three times longer than a lead acid system. This equals a lower rate of replacement. In terms of manufacturing, the mainstay of the lithium industry in terms of high volume manufacturing is the 18650 cells that are used in notebook computers. With costs in the vicinity of $350 per kilowatt-hour, or $0.35 per watt-hour, costs are expected to continue to decline. It is expected that in the long-term, the large-scale format lithium chemistry could potentially be competitive with lead acid on a cost basis because the technology has watt-hour advantage in addition to a firm manufacturing knowledge.
Valence’s Alliances - Solid Foundation for the Future
In addition to conducting a solid partnership with Tyco Electronics, Valence is also involved in the United States Advanced Battery Consortium. This organization is a conglomerate including Ford, GM, and Chrysler. This consortium is evaluating Valence’s cell technology for electric vehicle and hybrid electric vehicles. One of Valence’s key strategies for market entry has been to partner with the industry leaders for key support areas. As Valence specializes in the cell technology, it requires design process expertise in key application areas such as vehicles or telecom cabinets.
These alliances have really supported Valence in its efforts to enter the market for large format energy storage systems. For example, recently a K-Charge system was directed to Electric Vehicles International, a company that specializes in EV applications. The company is expected to use the K-Charge system in a delivery van. This EV van was initially launched with the lead acid technology, and will be replaced by Valence’s K-Charge system for testing. Such alliances provide Valence with a parallel approach that will help the company with the learning curve at the cell technology level in addition to the product level. This aids the company to evaluate and overcome any issues associated with installing its batteries in EVs.
K-Charge - is the Power of the Future
The K-Charge Power System is an energy storage system designed specifically for large format applications. Because it uses Valence’s Saphion lithium-ion technology, the K-Charge system demonstrates all the safety, flexibility, and high performance characteristics that the Saphion technology has displayed for small-scale applications. The Saphion lithium-ion technology utilizes a phosphate cathode material in lieu of the cobalt-oxide material traditionally used in lithium-ion technologies. This phosphate-based technology offers the combination of energy, safety, and environmental advantages.
For more information, please contact sbradford@frost.com |
