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Comparing Lithium Batteries
Considering a Lithium Battery Upgrade for Your AWP? Here Are Some Facts You Need to Know
Over the past decade, there has been a push in the battery industry to be the first to have a deep-cycle lithium-ion( Li-ion) product for a variety of battery-powered industrial equipment, including AWPs, forklifts and cranes. For companies and individuals wanting to switch to lithium chemistry to add maintenance-free operation and long-lasting advantages for these types of vehicles, it’ s important to know that battery manufacturers utilize a variety of cell designs and construction that impact the quality and reliability of the battery. To make a wise choice for your particular application, it’ s important to understand the different cell types, configurations and construction used to create them.
Cylindrical vs. Prismatic Cells
Within the AWP and lift industry, there are a variety of sizes and capacities of deep-cycle Li-ion batteries on the market with several amp-hour( Ah) ratings to choose from. While power and capacities may be similar, the major differences are internal, with some battery manufacturers choosing to use cylindrical cells, primarily due to cost and availability. A cylindrical cell is similar in size and shape to an AA battery. Creating a deep-cycle battery for AWP’ s or other similar equipment by using cylindrical cells requires welding hundreds of these individual cells in series / parallel to achieve the required voltage and capacity.
Prismatic cells are another type of Li-ion battery cell that you will find on the market. These cells are about the size of a small book or stack of index cards. Some manufacturers prefer to use prismatic LFP cells because they are larger and deliver more energy per cell. In this case, a battery design using prismatic cells requires fewer of them( compared to cylindrical cells) to achieve the same voltage and capacity. A 24-volt Li-ion battery, for example, may only require eight prismatic cells that are connected in series using thick high-quality materials. In general, this creates a more robust mechanical
Cylindrical Li Cells
Prismatic Li Laser Welds
design, allowing for better thermal performance, and improves cell balancing control.
Making Good Connections
How Li-ion battery cells are welded together also makes a difference in its overall reliability, performance and durability. Manufacturers using prismatic cells typically connect them using laser welds for precision and consistency. This provides high shock and vibration resistance, which is important for any kind of AWP or crane that is used on a jobsite and may require lots of moving around and running across a variety of surfaces. By comparison, lithium batteries using cylindrical cells often have small spot weld connections with limited contact area, making them susceptible to detachment from consistent equipment vibrations.
The thickness of the material used to weld cells also impacts the quality of construction, with some manufacturers using very thin metal
Prismatic Li Cells
Cylindrical Li Spot Welds
sheets to connect cylindrical cells. Potentially making them susceptible to overheating during charging and discharging, which can reduce battery life. The thick bus bar material used for some prismatic cells are excellent for high amp loads, often seen when AWP machines are used on larger jobs such as arenas and halls, where they need to work longer over a single period of use.
If your goal is to take advantage of lithium deep-cycle battery technology safely, it’ s important to ask your battery dealer about battery construction. If they are unfamiliar or can’ t get that information for you, research the battery info from the manufacturer’ s websites. Then ask your dealer about the differences between battery brands, and look for those that provide the highest quality and reliability for your money. For more information on U. S. Batteries full line of AWP batteries, visit www. usbattery. com.
U. S. Battery Manufacturing 1675 Sampson Avenue, Corona, CA 92879 /( 800) 695-0945 / www. usbattery. com
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