SOLUTION
Lithium-ion Battery
Lithium-ion battery is a type of rechargeable battery in which lithium ions move from the negative electrode (anode) to the positive electrode (cathode) through electrolyte during discharge and vice versa during charge.
INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION OF
LITHIUM-ION BATTERY
There are so many different types of Li-ion batteries, the main difference between them lies in their cathode materials. Different kinds of lithium-ion batteries offer different features, with trade-offs between specific power, specific energy, safety, lifespan, cost, and performance.
For material handling application, LFP is typically used to power the equipment such as electric forklift, power pallet truck, reach truck and etc. Reason being is LFP offers lots of benefits compared to other lithium batteries such as high level of safety, longer lifespan, and comes at a low cost.
COMPARISON OF
LEAD ACID AND LITHIUM-ION FORMLIFT BATTERIES
In material handling equipment industry, there are two common battery technology that typically used to power the equipment which are lead acid battery and lithium-ion battery. However, lithium battery technology has become more popular in recent years. Below explains why people switching to lithium battery instead of lead acid battery nowadays.
After
Before
TOTAL COST OF OWNERSHIP
COST SAVING AND LOWER
TOTAL COST OF OWNERSHIP (TCO)
At first glance, lithium-ion batteries seem to have a higher upfront cost as compared to lead acid batteries. However, if we take in consideration of maintenance, impact on productivity and overall lifespan, lithium-ion batteries eventually provide a far lower total cost of ownership.
BATTERY LIFE CYCLE
LONGER
SERVICE LIFE
Generally, lithium-ion batteries have a service life in exceed of 4000 cycles, while lead acid batteries only have an average service life of 1200 cycles if maintained well. For lead acid batteries, every plug-in & out of lead acid batteries indicates one charging cycle, which means you cannot stop in the middle of the charging time. In other words, the lifespan of the lead acid batteries will be impacted due to improper maintenance and usage.
VIRTUALLY
MAINTENANCE FREE
Lithium-ion batteries does not require maintenance as what lead acid batteries do such as battery watering, equalization, acid adjustment and etc. Thus, this makes lithium-ion batteries nearly maintenance free.
SOLUTIONS
HIGHER
OPERATION EFFICIENCY
For lead acid battery technology, one full charged battery is meant to run 1 shift operation, which means whenever there is operation more than 1 shift, users will need to replace the battery between the shifts. The changeouts of battery (dismount the battery and load in the standby battery) would eventually affect the productivity. However, lithium-ion batteries are designed for opportunity charging which means charging can be happened at any time such as during a lunch or tea break. The feature of opportunity charging allows trucks to run multi-shift operation without changing batteries in between the shifts.
SOLUTIONS
FAST
CHARGING TIME
On average, lithium-ion batteries would only take 2 to 3 hours to fully charge and do not require any cool down time. In con- trast, lead acid batteries take 8 to 10 hours to be fully charged, yet require a cool-down period. Thus, in the context of day-to-day operation, lithium-ion forklift batteries offer signifi- cantly faster charging time as compared to lead acid batteries, which also help in optimizing daily productivity.
SAFER OPERATION
The electrolyte solution in lead acid batteries contains sulfuric acid, which is highly corrosive. The overflow of sulfuric acid will not only cause equipment corrosion, it can also cause personnel injury like chemical burns to the skin, damage to the eyes and etc. In addition, overcharging of lead acid batteries will emit harmful and explo- sive gases where a well-ventilated charging room is required. This would become an additional cost for users. However, since lithium-ion batteries are fully sealed, there is unlikely for problems like acid spills, emission of harmful gases to be happened.
ADVANTAGES OF LI-ION
LONG SERVICE LIFE
RETURN ON INVESTMENT
VIRTUALLY MAINTENANCE FREE
SAFE AND RELIABLE
FAST CHARGING
HIGH ENERGY DENSITY
