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Batteries & storage

Find NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI reports about batteries and energy storage. Search electrode materials, lithium-ion batteries and storage systems in indexed report metadata.

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NASA NTRS1989

Advanced high-temperature batteries

The promise of very high specific energy and power was not yet achieved for practical battery systems. Some recent approaches are discussed for new approaches to achieving high performance for lithium/DeS2 cells and sodium/metal chloride cells. The main problems for the development of successful LiAl/FeS2 cells were the instability of the FeS2 electrode, which has resulted in rapidly declining capacity, the lack of an internal mechanism for accommodating overcharge of a cell, thus requiring the use of external charge control on each individual cell, and the lack of a suitable current collector for the positive electrode other than expensive molybdenum sheet material. Much progress was made in solving the first two problems. Reduction of the operating temperatures to 400 C by a change in electrolyte composition has increased the expected life to 1000 cycles. Also, a lithium shuttle mechanism was demonstrated for selected electrode compositions that permits sufficient overcharge tolerance to adjust for the normally expected cell-to-cell deviation in coulombic efficiency. Sodium/sulfur batteries and sodium/metal chloride batteries have demonstrated good reliability and long cycle life. For applications where very high power is desired, new electrolyte coinfigurations would be required. Design work was carried out for the sodium/metal chloride battery that demonstrates the feasibility of achieving high specific energy and high power for large battery cells having thin-walled high-surface area electrolytes.

Nelson, Paul A.↗

NASA NTRS1989

A survey of advanced battery systems for space applications

The results of a survey on advanced secondary battery systems for space applications are presented. Fifty-five battery experts from government, industry and universities participated in the survey by providing their opinions on the use of several battery types for six space missions, and their predictions of likely technological advances that would impact the development of these batteries. The results of the survey predict that only four battery types are likely to exceed a specific energy of 150 Wh/kg and meet the safety and reliability requirements for space applications within the next 15 years.

Attia, Alan I.↗

NASA NTRS1989

Sodium-sulfur battery flight experiment definition study

NaS batteries have been identified as the most likely successor to space Ni-H2 or Ni-Cd batteries, primarily due to a mass reduction by a factor 2 to 3 over Ni-H2 and by a factor of 4 over Ni-Cd. This yields major launch cost reductions or payload mass improvements. NaS batteries support NASA OAST's proposed Civil Space Technology Initiative goal of a factor of two improvement in spacecraft 2000 initiative. Since Ni-H2 and Ni-Cd batteries have been space flight proven, it is essential to have the flight experiment to establish a national space technology base to demonstrate the operation of the NaS battery for space applications.

Chang, Rebecca↗

NASA NTRS1989

NASA aerospace battery systems program update

An overview of a battery systems program designed to enhance the safety, reliability, and performance of NASA's aerospace primary and secondary batteries as well as battery power systems is presented. The status of research in all three areas is reviewed. The approach to achieving the program objectives involves increasing the fundamental understanding of primary and secondary cells; providing for improved nickel-cadmium manufacturing process control; providing for the establishment of a NASA standard nickel-hydrogen cell design; establishing specifications, design and operational guidelines for both primary and secondary cells and batteries; providing training relating to the above areas; and opening and maintaining communication lines within NASA and the aerospace battery community.

Manzo, Michelle A.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Effect of Polymer Electrode Morphology on Performance of a Lithium/Polypyrrole Battery

A variety of conducting polymer batteries were described in the recent literature. In this work, a Li/Polypyrrole secondary battery is described. The effect of controlling the morphology of the polymer on enhancement of counterion diffusion in the polymer phase is explored. A method of preparing conducting polymers was developed which yields high surface area per unit volume of electrode material. A porous membrane is used as a template in which to electrochemically polymerize pyrrole, then the membrane is dissolved, leaving the polymer in a fibrillar form. Conventionally, the polymer is electrochemically polymerized as a dense polymer film on a smooth Pt disk electrode. Previous work has shown that when the polymer is electrochemically polymerized in fribrillar form, charge transport rates are faster and charge capacities are greater than for dense, conventionally grown films containing the same amount of polymer. The purpose is to expand previous work by further investigating the possibilities of the optimization of transport rates in polypyrrole films by controlling the morphology of the films. The utility of fibrillar polypyrrole as a cathode material in a lithium/polymer secondary battery is then assessed. The performance of the fibrillar battery is compared to the performance of an analogous battery which employed a conventionally grown polypyrrole film. The study includes a comparison of cyclic voltammetry, shape of charge/discharge curves, discharge time and voltage, cycle life, coulombic efficiencies, charge capacities, energy densities, and energy efficiencies.

Nicholson, Marjorie Anne↗

NASA NTRS1990

Battery test expert systems

The characteristics of NIHBES (nickel-hydrogen battery expert system) are described, with attention also given to NICBES-2 (nickel-cadmium battery expert system-2). The nickel-hydrogen battery testbed is set up almost identically to the nickel-cadmium battery testbed, with the exceptions of no battery protection and reconditioning circuits (BPRCs) and the frequency of transmission of data. The Ni-H2 testbed has no BPRCs and the data are transmitted every 30 s instead of every minute. An expert system shell was chosen to develop this particular expert system. The GoldWorks expert system shell from Gold Hill Computers was chosen for the task. NIHBES will extract the desired data and return fault diagnosis, status and advice, and decision support. Expert systems have been proven to be viable tools in the control and monitoring of space power systems. Presently, the DDAS (digital data acquisition system) monitors and controls the orbit time, and is responsible for limit checking, data acquisition, and data summaries. It is concluded that in the future control of the Hubble Space Telescope breadboard will be passed to NIHBES. NIHBES will be more beneficial to the testbed than the DDAS alone due to the limitations of the DDAS. The DDAS cannot provide long-term trend analysis, plotting capability, fault diagnosis, or advice.

Johnson, Yvette B.↗

NASA NTRS1992

Primary zinc-air batteries for space power

Prismatic HR and LC cells and batteries were built and tested, and they performed well with respect to the program goals of high capacity and high rate capability at specific energies. The HR batteries suffered reduced utilizations owing to dryout at the 2 and 3 A rates for the 50 C tests owing to the requirement for forced convection. The LC batteries suffered reduced utilizations under all conditions owing to the chimney effect at 1 G, although this effect would not occur at 0 G. An empirical model was developed which accurately predicted utilizations and average voltages for single cells, although thermal effects encountered during battery testing caused significant deviations, both positive and negative, from the model. Based on the encouraging results of the test program, we believe that the zinc-air primary battery of a flat, stackable configuration can serve as a high performance and safe power source for a range of space applications.

Bragg, Bobby J.↗

NASA NTRS1992

Sealed aerospace metal-hydride batteries

Nickel metal hydride and silver metal hydride batteries are being developed for aerospace applications. There is a growing market for smaller, lower cost satellites which require higher energy density power sources than aerospace nickel-cadmium at a lower cost than space nickel-hydrogen. These include small LEO satellites, tactical military satellites and satellite constellation programs such as Iridium and Brilliant Pebbles. Small satellites typically do not have the spacecraft volume or the budget required for nickel-hydrogen batteries. NiCd's do not have adequate energy density as well as other problems such as overcharge capability and memory effort. Metal hydride batteries provide the ideal solution for these applications. Metal hydride batteries offer a number of advantages over other aerospace battery systems.

Coates, Dwaine↗

NASA NTRS1991

Design of a battery charger for the NASA EOS space platform

A battery charger design for the NASA Earth Observing System (EOS) space platform has been developed and tested. The authors discuss the design of the battery charger power state and its current and voltage control loops. In addition to restoring energy to the batteries, this charger regulates the spacecraft bus voltage during the posteclipse transition period. The battery charger design and analysis were facilitated by use of the pulse-width-modulated (PWM) switch model and the new continuous-time model for current-mode control. Analyses of the battery charger small-signal behavior are compared to hardware measurements to verify modeling accuracy.

Sizemore, Tom↗

NASA NTRS1991

Prelaunch self-discharge and charge-acceptance characteristics of the Hubble Space Telescope nickel hydrogen batteries

Tests performed at NASA/MSFC on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) nickel-hydrogen batteries (flight spare module and flight spare battery) were used to determine self-discharge and charge-acceptance characteristics when the batteries were exposed to charged wet-stand conditions, pulse charging on the launch pad, and battery capacity at solar array deployment. An equation is presented which was used to predict the capacity that would be available in the HST NiH2 batteries after an extended stand time on the launch pad plus up to 2 days on orbit prior to solar array deployment (either ground power or orbiter power were used to supply HST loads until shortly before the solar arrays were deployed). It is shown that a fairly accurate estimate of the available capacity was made.

Lanier, John R., Jr.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Bipolar lead acid battery development

A modular bipolar battery configuration is under development at Johnson Control, Inc. (JCI) and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). The battery design, incorporating proven lead acid electrochemistry, yields a rechargeable, high-power source that is light weight and compact. This configuration offers advantages in power capability, weight, and volume over conventional monopolar batteries and other battery chemistries. The lead acid bipolar battery operates in a sealed, maintenance-free mode allowing for maximum application flexibility. It is ideal for high-voltage and high-power applications.

Eskra, Michael↗

NASA NTRS1992

Battery selection for space experiments

This paper will delineate the criteria required for the selection of batteries as a power source for space experiments. Four basic types of batteries will be explored, lead acid, silver zinc, alkaline manganese and nickel cadmium. A detailed description of the lead acid and silver zinc cells while a brief exploration of the alkaline manganese and nickel cadmium will be given. The factors involved in battery selection such as packaging, energy density, discharge voltage regulation, and cost will be thoroughly examined. The pros and cons of each battery type will be explored. Actual laboratory test data acquired for the lead acid and silver zinc cell will be discussed. This data will include discharging under various temperature conditions, after three months of storage and with different types of loads. A description of the required maintenance for each type of battery will be investigated. The lifetime and number of charge/discharge cycles will be discussed.

Francisco, David R.↗

NASA NTRS1992

Hubble Space Telescope nickel-hydrogen battery and cell testing - An update

NASA's HST uses Ni-H2 batteries. NASA-Marshall has been conducting developmental tests of such batteries in both six-battery and 22-cell single battery arrays. Tests have recently been conducted on such batteries with a view to the possible need to free additional memory in the HST onboard computer; the electrical power system could contribute to this end by eliminating its software control charge mode capability, which requires significant computer memory capacity.

Brewer, Jeffrey C.↗

NASA NTRS1994

Summary of NASA Aerospace Flight Battery Systems Program activities

A summary of NASA Aerospace Flight Battery Systems Program Activities is presented. The NASA Aerospace Flight Battery Systems Program represents a unified NASA wide effort with the overall objective of providing NASA with the policy and posture which will increase the safety, performance, and reliability of space power systems. The specific objectives of the program are to: enhance cell/battery safety and reliability; maintain current battery technology; increase fundamental understanding of primary and secondary cells; provide a means to bring forth advanced technology for flight use; assist flight programs in minimizing battery technology related flight risks; and ensure that safe, reliable batteries are available for NASA's future missions.

Manzo, Michelle↗

NASA NTRS1994

Primary battery design and safety guidelines handbook

This handbook provides engineers and safety personnel with guidelines for the safe design or selection and use of primary batteries in spaceflight programs. Types of primary batteries described are silver oxide zinc alkaline, carbon-zinc, zinc-air alkaline, manganese dioxide-zionc alkaline, mercuric oxide-zinc alkaline, and lithium anode cells. Along with typical applications, the discussions of the individual battery types include electrochemistry, construction, capacities and configurations, and appropriate safety measures. A chapter on general battery safety covers hazard sources and controls applicable to all battery types. Guidelines are given for qualification and acceptance testing that should precede space applications. Permissible failure levels for NASA applications are discussed.

Bragg, Bobby J.↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Artemis Vehicle Battery Requirements and Processes

- Purpose: - Give an overview of cells, batteries and design features for safety - Show what the hazards are for flying batteries in crewed space vehicles - Show how to control the hazards of batteries and verify that they are functioning as expected - Contact Information - Success of batteries being approved for flight is improved by talking with JSC Battery Safety Group early in the development of hardware

Renee Coe Weber↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

The Cognition Battery: Developing a Normative Database for Spaceflight and Examining the Impact of Prolonged Isolation and Confinement on Cognitive Performance

INTRODUCTION: Astronauts on future long duration space exploration will be required to execute complex tasks in which even minor errors could have devastating consequences. Intact cognition is critical to maintain exceptional performance standards and it is possible that variability even at the highest ends of the performance spectrum will impact operational tasks. Exposure to spaceflight hazards could compromise cognitive performance, and decrements have been documented under conditions of altered gravity and radiation exposure. The cognitive impacts of prolonged isolation and confinement remain relatively unknown. Traditional neuropsychological assessments cannot support earth independent monitoring, do not have normative comparisons for high functioning individuals, and most are not sensitive enough to detect small performance decrements. The Cognition Battery was developed to address these limitations but currently lacks comprehensive normative data. In this project, we aimed to 1) develop a preliminary normative database for astronauts and astronaut surrogates using the Cognition Battery, and 2) characterize differences in cognitive performance after short and long duration analog missions. PARTICIPANTS & METHODS: We assessed baseline cognitive performance by administering the Cognition Battery to 97 astronaut and astronaut surrogates recruited to approximate astronaut demographics (mean age: 39.38, SD=7.62; 35.1% female; 91.7% advanced degrees). For aim 1, we calculated speed and accuracy outcomes for each subtest and summarized the data with descriptive statistics. We examined the relationship between age and performance with Pearsons’s correlations and the relationship between gender and performance with independent samples t-tests. A subset of individuals on short duration (n=48; mean age: 38.18, SD=7.14; 37.5% female; 91.7% advanced degrees) missions of 45 days and long duration (n=34; mean age: 42.12, SD=8.39; 38.2% female; 94.1% advanced degrees) missions ranging from 4-8 months were administered the Cognition Battery during and after their respective missions. For aim 2, we accounted for practice effects using published corrections, and z-transformed post-mission scores using the full sample’s baseline scores. One-way analysis of covariance tests determined the main effect of analog duration on post-mission performance, after accounting for age and gender. The False Discovery Rate method was applied to adjust for multiple comparisons. RESULTS: In the full normative sample, older age was associated with slower reaction times on a processing speed task (r=.39, p=.02), and men were more accurate on processing speed (t=-2.19, p=.03) and faster on sustained attention (t=2.02, p=.049) and risk-taking tasks (t=2.49, p=.02). We observed a main effect of duration on performance on tasks of visual memory (f(1)=5.62, p=.04), processing speed (f(1)=5.48, p=.03), and sensorimotor functioning (f(1)=39.52, p < .001), such that slower performance was observed after long duration missions relative to short. Only sensorimotor functioning was significant after adjustments for multiple comparisons (adjusted p<.001). DISCUSSION: The full sample represents the largest dataset of cognitive performance assessed by the Cognition Battery available and can be used for further research in spaceflight and high-performance populations. Relationships between performance and key demographic variables suggest future research that include age and gender stratification is needed. Our results also show minimal changes in cognitive performance between longer and shorter periods of isolation and confinement.

S I Dev↗

DOE OSTI2013

Methods for thermodynamic evaluation of battery state of health

Described are systems and methods for accurately characterizing thermodynamic and materials properties of electrodes and battery systems and for characterizing the state of health of electrodes and battery systems. Measurement of physical attributes of electrodes and batteries corresponding to thermodynamically stabilized electrode conditions permit determination of thermodynamic parameters, including state functions such as the Gibbs free energy, enthalpy and entropy of electrode/electrochemical cell reactions, that enable prediction of important performance attributes of electrode materials and battery systems, such as energy, power density, current rate, cycle life and state of health. Also provided are systems and methods for charging a battery according to its state of health.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗