Battery Power - January/February 2013 - (Page 30)

Industry news BAE Systems has awarded Saft with $1.3 million in new funding for the continued development of a Li-Ion energy storage system for the US Army’s Ground Combat Vehicle (GCV) program. Saft, which is designing and building ultra- highpower cells for the vehicle’s hybrid electric drive system, has already completed the demo battery system including hardware and software. The GCV is part of a growing list of military vehicle prototypes for which Saft has supplied advanced energy storage solutions (ESS). The new funding for the GCV project is an addition to the initial 2010 contract. The GCV is a nine-man infantry carrier that can protect against threats, move in urban and off-road terrain and accommodate emerging technologies such as lightweight armor composites and electronics. Comprised of ultra-high-power, highvoltage VL 5U cells, the Li-Ion ESS supports the GCV’s electric drive system when the vehicle is not running on gasoline, such as during silent watch missions. The ESS system employs green technologies, which improves vehicle fuel consumption and improves weight savings. Saft’s proposed ESS reduces the program cost and provides a highly reliable product by leveraging already developed subsystems and components from other qualified system to use on the GCV program. Saft joins Northrop Grumman, iRobot, MTU and Qinetiq North America on the BAE Systems GCV team, one of two industry teams working on the technology development phase of the program. The 24-month technology development phase is aimed at completing preliminary design reviews in order build prototype systems prior to the engineering and manufacturing phase. Saft Awarded Additional $1.3 million by BAE Systems For US Army’s Ground Combat Vehicle Lithium-Ion Energy Storage System Palladium Energy Acquires MicroSun Technologies, Forming an Industry Powerhouse Palladium Energy, Inc. has completed the acquisition of MicroSun Technologies, LLC. By joining forces with MicroSun, Palladium is now the largest independent battery pack integrator in the Americas and Europe, with a six-country global footprint, world-class design and manufacturing, as well as rapid prototype and response capabilities. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. The acquisition expands Palladium’s position in key markets such as medical, military, industrial, commercial and consumer electronics. In addition, Palladium’s intellectual property and technology position is strengthened through the addition of MicroSun’s Dismounted Power platform architecture, delivering innovative safety, product life extension and ruggedized power solutions for mission critical applications. Lithium-Ion Batteries Demonstrate Their Safety in Fire Tests Utah State University has demonstrated a first-of-its-kind electric bus that is charged through wireless charging technology. The Aggie Bus rolled onto the streets carrying passengers; 16 months after USU demonstrated the first high-power, highefficiency wireless power transfer system capable of transferring enough energy to quickly charge an electric vehicle. In July 2011, the USU Research Foundation demonstrated 90 percent electrical transfer efficiency of five kilowatts over an air gap of 10 inches. The demonstration validated that electric vehicles can efficiently be charged with wireless technology. USU’s Aggie Bus has achieved several significant milestones. It is the first bus developed and designed by a North American organization that is charged with wireless power transfer technology and is the world’s first electric bus with WPT technology combining the three following performance metrics: a power level up to 25 kilowatts, greater than 90 percent efficiency from the power grid to the battery and a maximum misalignment of up to six inches. Utah State University Unveils Wirelessly Charged Electric Bus DEKRA Automobil GmbH has spent a long time focusing on the safety of electric vehicles. In this series of tests, three traction batteries from an electric vehicle currently on the market were set alight and then extinguished using different extinguishing agents. The batteries were set alight with petrol. After a few minutes exposed to flames at temperatures exceeding 800°C, the batteries began to burn by themselves. Here, flame and smoke development was much less than with burning petrol. The excess pressure generated inside the batteries as a result of the fire was dissipated outwards through the in-built pressure relief valves. This caused smaller flash fires, although these were less intense than those seen in petrol fires. The experts used a variety of means to test how burning traction batteries can be extinguished. In the first test of the series, they fought the fire with water. Although this was successful, it did take time. Several times the fire went out only to flare up again. This shows that the vehicle or battery housing need to be cooled down once the fire itself has been extinguished. Overall, considerably more water was consumed in this test than would be required for extinguishing fires in conventional vehicles. In the two follow-up tests, different additives were used for enhancing the extinguishing and cooling effect of the water. One of the two agents creates a gel when mixed with water, which then does not flow away as easily, but remains on the burning object and thus cools much more effectively. The other additive reduces the water’s surface tension and increases its evaporation rate. This also enhances the cooling effect. All in all, the accident researchers concluded that, in the event of a fire, electric and hybrid vehicles equipped with lithium-ion traction batteries are at least as safe as petrol or diesel cars. The water that was flowing away from the scene was also analyzed. The analysis conducted in the DEKRA laboratory for environmental and product analysis showed that the level of contamination is comparable to that seen in the water used to extinguish fires in conventional cars. www.BatteryPowerOnline.com 30 Battery Power • January/February 2013 http://www.BatteryPowerOnline.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Battery Power - January/February 2013

Battery Power - January/February 2013
Table of Contents
Editor's Choice
GM, ABB Demonstrate Chevrolet Volt Battery Reuse Unit
Features
Testing Requirements in the Electric Vehicle Industry
Nearing the Promise of the Micro-Hybrid Vehicles: Technology Improvements and New Markets
So You’ve Been Placed on Notice... Now What?
Advanced Numerical Simulation for Hybrid and Electric Vehicles
High-Voltage Battery Simulator and Test Systems Critical for Electric and Hybrid Vehicle Development
Key Elements to Assuring a Well Developed Verification Plan for Your Battery Powered Device
New Products
Batteries
Components
ICs & Semiconductors
Departments
Industry News
Marketplace
Calendar of Events

Battery Power - January/February 2013