The use of lithium batteries for power and energy-hungry applications has risen drastically in recent years. For such applications, it is necessary to connect the batteries in large assemblies of cells in series and parallel. With a large number of cells operating together, it is necessary to understand their intrinsic variabilities, not only at the initial stage but also upon aging. In this study, we studied a batch of commercial cells to address their initial cell-to-cell variations and also the variations induced by cycling. To do so, we not only tracked several metrics associated with cell performance, the maximum capacity, the resistance, and the rate capability but also the degradation mechanism via a non-invasive quantification of the loss of lithium inventory (LLI), the loss of active material (LAM) and the kinetic degradation on both electrodes. We found that, even with small initial cell-to-cell variations, significant variations will be observed upon aging because the cells degrade at a different pace. We also observed that these variations were not correlated with the initial variations.

Automobile dependency and the inexorable proliferation of electric vehicles (EVs) compels accurate predictions of cycle life across multiple usage conditions and for multiple lithium-ion battery systems. Synthetic driving cycles have been essential in accumulating data on EV battery lifetimes. However, since battery deterioration is path-dependent, the representability of synthetic cycles must be questioned. Hence, this work compared three different synthetic driving cycles to real driving data in terms of mimicking actual EV battery degradation. It was found that the average current and charge capacity during discharge were important parameters in determining the appropriate synthetic profile, and traffic conditions have a significant impact on cell lifetimes. In addition, a stage of accelerated capacity fade was observed and shown to be induced by an increased loss of lithium inventory (LLI) resulting from irreversible Li plating. New metrics, the ratio of the loss of active material at the negative electrode (LAM_NE) to the LLI and the plating threshold, were proposed as possible predictors for a stage of accelerated degradation. The results presented here demonstrated tracking properties, such as capacity loss and resistance increase, were insufficient in predicting cell lifetimes, supporting the adoption of metrics based on the analysis of degradation modes.

Validation is an integral part of any study dealing with modeling or development of new control algorithms for lithium ion batteries. Without proper validation, the impact of a study could be drastically reduced. In a perfect world, validation should involve testing in deployed systems, but it is often unpractical and costly. As a result, validation is more often conducted on single cells under control laboratory conditions. Laboratory testing is a complex task, and improper implementation could lead to fallacious results. Although common practice in open literature, the protocols used are usually too quickly detailed and important details are left out. This work intends to fully describe, explain, and exemplify a simple step-by-step single apparatus methodology for commercial battery testing in order to facilitate and standardize validation studies.

State-of-health (SOH) is an essential parameter for the proper functioning of large battery packs. A wide array of methodologies has been proposed in the literature to track state of health, but they often lack the proper validation that needed to be universally adaptable to large deployed systems. This is likely induced by the lack of knowledge bridge between scientists, who understand batteries, and engineers, who understand controls. In this work, we will attempt to bridge this gap by providing definitions, concepts, and tools to apply necessary material science knowledge to advanced battery management systems (BMS). We will address SOH determination and prediction, as well as BMS implementation and validation using the mechanistic framework developed around electrochemical voltage spectroscopies. Particular focus will be set on the onset and the prediction of the second stage of accelerating capacity loss that is commonly observed in commercial lithium-ion batteries.

Grid-tied energy storage will play a key role in the reduction of carbon emissions. Systems based on Li-ion batteries could be good candidates for the task, especially those using lithium titanate negative electrodes. In this work, we will present the study of seven years of usage of a lithium titanate-based battery energy storage system on an isolated island grid. We will show that, even after seven years, the modules’ capacity loss is below 10% and that overall the battery is still performing within specifications. From our results, we established a forecast based on the internal degradation mechanisms of the hottest and coldest modules to show that the battery full lifetime on the grid should easily exceed 15 years. We also identified some inaccuracies in the online capacity estimation methodology which complicates the monitoring of the system.

The usage of electric vehicle batteries to assist the main electric grid for the storage of energy provided by intermittent sources should become an essential tool to increase the penetration of green energies. However, this service induces additional usage on the cells and, therefore, could degrade them further. Since degradation is path-dependent, it is of paramount importance to test the impact of all the different grid applications on the batteries. In this work, we tested the additional usage induced by using electric vehicle batteries for frequency regulation at moderate rates during rest or charge and found no detrimental effect after around 2000 cycles on the cells.