Today the demand for high-energy batteries is rapidly increasing. The main reason for this increasing demand is to provide long-term solutions for machines to run properly. The frontrunners in this race are Lithium batteries. So, let&#;s discuss how to buy a lithium battery. Moreover, we will discuss its applications in various industries. From smartphones to laptops, remote controllers to toys, digital media to electric vehicles, these are serving as energy storage systems. If you search the market to buy a lithium battery, you need to navigate that can be frustrating.
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In our comprehensive guide, we will explore all the aspects and quick search features of these versatile and durable batteries. These will not only help you in searching for good ones but also influence your buying decisions.
Part 1. Considerable features when buying lithium-ion battery
You can not randomly buy a lithium battery. For this, there is no need for much knowledge of its considerable features. If you do, then it can be spam or useless with no results. We have come up with significant characteristics for you when buying lithium batteries.
1. Compatibility To Device
Every lithium battery has compatibility and chemistry with a variety of devices. The most common and considerable types are
- Lithium-Ion (Li-ion) battery: These offer compelling energy density and are compatible with electric devices like vehicles and everyday consumer electronics.
- Lithium-polymer (LiPo) battery: These are highly flexible and lightweight batteries used in radio-controlled vehicles and drones.
2. Battery Voltage and Storing Capacity
Capacity is the energy-storing power of a battery, measured in milliampere-hours and ampere-hours. Voltage is the potential energy and output energy that a battery provides to devices. You need to buy a battery that fits your gadget and fulfills the requirements to make it work efficiently and correctly. If you choose a low voltage, it can slow the charging, and your appliance will take more time. Therefore, for optimal charging, a compatible battery is necessary.
3. Longevity And Durable Life Cycle
The batteries should have a long and robust charging and discharging life cycle. It effectively impacts the functionality and working of the device. The cycle depends on the various factors:
- Charging Rate: Batteries that have charging temperatures from 32° F to 114° F are preferable to choose.
- Discharging rate: The lowest discharging rate should be around -4° F and the highest should not exceed 130° F
- Quality and power: The current power range of lithium batteries must start from 10A and go above it. That high power makes them potent to hold the electrode circuit and maintain the quality.
- Battery Cycle Average: The high-quality batteries have a longer cycle that should cover 300 &#; 500 charging cycles. It will keep your battery working for up to 3 years, so you do not need to charge your machine repeatedly.
4. Protective Circuit
Considering the safety protections is essential before buying Lithium Batteries. These power units have an electrochemical system that can be exploited if mishandled. So, therefore, go for the cells that have a protective circuit. It will stop the electrical cycle after charging completion and prevent cells from overheating. Moreover, safety features include: Overcharging protection, Short circuit prevention, Thermal protection, Temperature controller, and Protective circuit
5. Environmental Factors
Batteries that use environmentally friendly materials from manufacturing to disposal are more sustainable for the atmosphere. Therefore, to keep it clean, use non-toxic power units with recycling substances and less harmful chemical substrates like sodium, cobalt, sulfur, and oxygen. The hard and toxic chemicals will make the surfaces, causing metal-erosion damage, and slowing down of battery connections.
6. Price And Affordability
While purchasing, you need to prioritize rechargeable lithium battery prices. You need to access high-quality batteries, more in performance, and offer a warranty at reasonable rates. Additionally, companies that manufacture high-end cells introduce their products with a bit more cost. But, make a decision that comprehends you a long-term benefit.
Part 2. Where to buy lithium batteries?
Lithium batteries are in every room using tools, whether you are going to use them in your electronic devices or run your office device, these are complimentary. So, knowing the significant properties of these energy cells is necessary. But if, the battery you bought is not working efficiently? So, the next thing that comes to mind that where to buy authentic batteries. Comprehending your search and providing you with the best solution, we suggest the places and ways to get good lithium batteries.
1. Authorized And Reputable Brands
You must buy Lithium Batteries from certified and top brands in the market with a reputed product approach. Ensuring the authenticity and warranty is crucial to avoid spam and false items. Therefore, when you search the renowned companies like LG, Tesla, Samsung, Panasonic, EVE Energy, etc, you will find that these companies are offering their customers extra services as a guarantee of authenticity. The services include after-sale services, return policies, authorized certificate stickers, and other technical support. So, approaching certified brands will be an ease of breath for you.
2. Fetch From The Online Market
The second choice is to find Lithium batteries in the online market. After the introduction of online marketing, people are expected to prefer to make purchases by sitting at home. But it would help if you were cautious while searching for good batteries. The market is full of fake and unreliable products that are usually cheap in quality and price. So, do not go without checking product reviews, the seller&#;s reputation, product ratings, and uncertified items. As it can cause you to feign cheap quality commodities.
3. Retailers Offering Customized Batteries
There are retailers in the market that offer customized and tailored lithium batteries. They are highly specialized and skilled in understanding customer demands and providing battery solutions. Search for the profound retailers and hire them to provide you with recommended and supported batteries.
Part 3. 5 Top manufacturers to buy lithium batteries
Here is a list of five top-grade manufacturers from where you can buy a lithium battery.
1. Tesla
A famous and top-rated battery service provider is Tesla. It was launched by an entrepreneur, Elon Musk, who revolutionized the market for automotive electrical cars with lithium batteries. The company is working on eco-friendly electric car productions that use less harmful batteries to avoid carbon-emitting systems. These highly powerful batteries serve as energy products for home battery servings and power packs for energy storage systems.
2. Panasonic
Panasonic is the largest contributor of lithium cells to Tesla. For decades, it has led the market with innovative, advanced, and high-quality batteries. Moreover, it has outstandingly focused on boosting high-performance batteries with long life cycles, high-density power, sustainability, and long-term battery solutions. Year after year, it has progressed battery technology with a wide range of compatible batteries for multiple electric gadgets.
3. Ufine Battery
Ufine Battery offers a wide range of options to buy a lithium battery. These may include lithium-ion batteries and lithium-polymer batteries. These batteries have a versatile nature. So, they come with inclusive features, such as high energy density, lightweight design, low self-discharge rate, and fast charging capabilities. Moreover, they also provide customization options for different battery voltages, capacities, and volumes. Compared to big brands, Ufine&#;s batteries are more flexible and more suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises.
4. Samsung SDI
Samsung SDI is a global brand famous for its extensive lithium battery production. It is a group of South Korean Conglomerate Samsung that delivers good-quality batteries for appliances like tablets, smartphones, vehicles, and other electrified devices. Throughout the decades, Samsung has maintained its batteries&#; eco-friendly, sustainable, and long-term properties.
5. LG Chem
Link to SUNJ ENERGY
LG Chem is a prominent brand in the market and is profoundly renowned for its strong lithium battery production. The technology and material are advanced, sharp-edge cut, unique, safe, and tailored to meet the requirements of various devices. The company is committed to its users by seeking research and further development in their battery performance.
Part 4. Conclusion
Lithium batteries have revolutionized energy storage power for a wide range of devices. When buying a high-efficiency lithium battery, consider the chemistry, voltage, environmental impact, compatibility, and safety. Also, buy batteries from famous and trusted companies for sound investment and long-term usage, and align them according to your device&#;s demands. So, if you want your gadget to work optimally, get the right lithium battery.
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Gerald
Electronic Engineering Writer
For material handling managers and operators of forklift trucks alike, lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries are becoming increasingly more popular for battery-powered electric vehicles. The primary reasons for this are that they don&#;t produce harmful emissions and they&#;re generally more energy-efficient than other available battery alternatives.
Li-ion batteries are described as having a high energy density due to the lithium inside them being highly reactive. There are many different lithium-ion battery types on the market and each type has different properties depending on the application of the battery.
Read on to learn more about the functionality, features, and benefits of Li-ion batteries.
7 key considerations of lithium-ion batteries
1. Cell type
TCM lithium-ion battery cell types are prismatic in NMC (Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide) chemistry and are packaged in a metal casing. A primary feature of prismatic Li-ion batteries is that they offer pressure vents that function to alleviate internal pressure which works to avoid unpredictable explosions in a warehouse or on-site.
The cell modules are controlled by an advanced battery management system (BMS) which balances cell status, and measures existing energy levels, temperature, and so on. The BMS communicates this to the battery charger via CAN (Controlled Area Network), which is a standardised electronic communication vehicle that allows electronic devices to communicate efficiently without the need for extensive wiring.
In case of error or failure, the BMS will shut down the power to the truck in a safe way.
2. Operating temperatures
Temperature is a critical factor as it has the potential to significantly impact the performance and application of Li-ion batteries. As different temperature conditions can result in different or adverse effects, getting to know a range of temperatures in this application is important for ensuring your batteries, and therefore your forklifts, are safe and in full working order.
Ambient temperature with full performance:
- Battery charging/discharging average temperature range: 0&#;C to +40&#;C
- Battery storage temperature range: 0&#;C to +40&#;C
- Li-ion charger temperature range: 0&#;C to +40&#;C
Ambient temperature with permanently reduced capacity and/or performance:
- Battery charging/discharging temperature range: -28&#;C to 0&#;C and +40&#;C to +55&#;C
- Battery storage cell temperature range: -20&#;C to 0&#;C and +40&#;C to +45&#;C
All continuous applications, -28&#;C to 0°C, are cold store applications with particular specifications and require a bespoke design. Get in touch with your local TCM dealer to find out more.
3. Charging systems
State-of-the-art Li-ion battery chargers are specifically designed to operate with the Li-ion battery product line. These batteries communicate with the battery management system via the CAN protocol. When the charger is connected to the battery, the BMS will shut down the truck&#;s vehicle control module (VCM) in around 5 seconds, before charging is automatically started.
As previously mentioned, Li-ion batteries offer maximum energy efficiency which is realised through a number of features:
State-of-the-art charging systems: energy efficiency which is realised via:
- a pioneering multi-resonance converter technology
- an intelligent activation management system for the charging modules when operating under a partial load
significantly reduced standby power consumption
Standby mode: this significantly reduces power consumption.
Intelligent activation management system: this functions for the charging modules operating under a partial load.
Encapsulated cooling: heat sinks are used when batteries/power semiconductors are being cooled. Along with cooling the Li-ion batteries, encapsulated cooling also works to keep dust and grime to a minimum.
&#;In-service&#; operations: chargers will continue to charge with reduced output even after the individual modules have been removed.
Mounting: Li-ion batteries are intended to be fitted on a wall with brackets for optimum safety and efficiency. These brackets are typically included in your package upon purchase.
4. Understanding charging times
A key advantage of lithium-ion batteries is that they&#;re able to offer rapid charging. However, this can be temperature-dependent. At a normal ambient temperature of +25&#;C, the batteries can be charged at 1C &#; which means fully charged in one hour.
&#;C&#; refers to the rate of charge and discharge. The capacity of a battery is typically rated at 1C, which means that a fully charged battery rated at 1Ah should provide 1A for one hour, for example.
For additional context, take a look at this table for some examples of alternative charging times:
5. Opportunity charge
Opportunity charging is a method wherein batteries are able to stay inside the forklift truck for multiple shifts while being charged. This is a standard procedure for Li-ion batteries. The battery management system protects the battery from harmful deep discharge as it will automatically alarm at a low state of charge (SOC) &#; reactively cutting the hydraulic lift system &#; and will later shut down the VCM truck computer to protect the truck, battery and operator.
When the Charger is connected to the battery, or if the built-in charger is connected to the mains supply, the truck will automatically shut down the VCM before the charging process starts. The battery must not physically be disconnected from the truck during opportunity charging.
Related read: Forklift Battery Charging Station Power Requirements Explained.
6. Equalising batteries and BDI
The process of balancing the battery, also known as equalising, helps to extend the battery&#;s life by re-balancing the concentration of electrolytes and ensuring all the cells are charged to their maximum potential. If no balancing process is frequently performed, the battery lifetime and remaining capacity will be reduced over time, making it less sustainable and, in turn, increasing your total cost of operation (TCO).
Battery balancing is carried out via a battery discharge indicator (BDI) which is connected to the battery with a CAN protocol indicating the battery&#;s SOC and highlighting any potential errors. It&#;s important to regularly conduct this process (a minimum of once a week) and ensure that the battery is connected to the charger until the BDI shows it&#;s fully charged for maximum output.
TCM forklift trucks are equipped with an extra battery discharge indicator mounted on the chassis.
7. Cost
No matter how efficient an item is, price always comes into play when deciding on which product to purchase. Whilst Li-ion batteries have a higher acquisition cost than alternatives such as lead-acid, they are more energy-efficient and sustainable meaning your business can make considerable savings in the long run.
Are you ready for ? Discover all of the steps you need to take to plan for an energy-efficient right here.
The key benefits of Li-ion batteries
For material handling organisations looking to adopt lithium-ion batteries, you can welcome a whole host of benefits.
- They consume less energy which contributes to a lower TCO
- They offer fast charging &#; within one hour &#; and can also be opportunity-charged, improving efficiency
- Their lifetime is typically 3-4 times longer than other battery alternatives such as lead-acid
- They don&#;t require maintenance or gassing, reducing cost and downtime
- They produce zero harmful emissions, meaning they are better for the health of the environment and your operators
- They don&#;t require mid-shift battery changes which increases productivity
- They have decentralised, accessible charging positions
- The internal resistance in the Li-ion battery is much lower than the likes of lead-acid, meaning that Li-ion batteries absorb regenerated energy very efficiently and contribute to extended driving cycles
Related read: Lead-Acid or Lithium-Ion: What's Powering Your Warehouse?
Why TCM&#;s solutions could be the right choice for your material handling operations
For our forklift trucks, we use NMC chemistry because it offers optimum battery lifetime, performance, and safety levels &#; for the forklift truck and the operator, too. The low maintenance requirements and the highly efficient performance of Li-ion batteries minimise interruptions, optimise productivity and preserve the truck&#;s residual value.
TCM forklifts utilise both lead-acid and Li-ion technology as each has its own unique benefits and drawbacks. However, we offer a range of modern Li-ion batteries &#; and their associated chargers &#; that are specially designed and tested to operate with the highest level of reliability and utilise the best available technology for optimum performance, safety and durability.
At TCM, we&#;re committed to helping you find the most efficient and cost-effective battery choice for your operations. For bespoke advice based on your personal circumstance, get in touch with your local TCM dealer here.
Are you interested in learning more about lithium ion battery supplier? Contact us today to secure an expert consultation!