The University of Southampton and REAPsystems, a specialist in lithium battery technology, have partnered to conduct a study on the application of lithium battery as an energy storage device in solar photovoltaic (PV) systems.
The research project has been led by Yue Wu, MSc Sustainable Energy Technologies student at the University, along with his supervisors, Dr John Low, Professor Tom Markvart and Dr Carlos Ponce de Leon. The project resulted in the discovery of a new battery, which has the potential in PV application and several other renewable energy systems. The battery could lead to the production of low-cost and highly efficient solar energy.
Yue Wu stated that lead acid battery is the traditional energy storage device utilized in nearly all PV systems. However, the use of lithium batteries particularly the lithium iron phosphate battery (LiFePO4) type have many beneficial features. A LiFePO4 battery has been linked to a PV system that is installed in one of the buildings of Southampton University, and using a REAPsystems’ battery management system data has been collected. The results revealed that the lithium battery has 95% energy efficiency, while the lead-acid battery has approximately 80%. In addition, the lithium battery has less weight and a longer lifetime than the commonly used lead-acid batteries.
The joint research project has revealed that the new battery has the potential to enhance the efficiency of photovoltaic systems and to minimize the installation and maintenance costs. The LiFePO4 battery needs additional testing before application in commercial photovoltaic systems. Currently, Dr John Low and Dr Carlos Ponce de Leon have planned to extend this project with a new group of Masters students.
Source: http://www.soton.ac.uk/