Energy management in the formation of light, starter, and ignition lead-acid batteries

Abstract

This paper discusses energy management in the formation process of lead acid batteries. Battery production and electricity consumption in during battery formation in a battery plant was analyzed over a 4 year period. The main parameters affecting the energy performance of battery production were identified and different actions to improve it were proposed. Furthermore, an Energy Performance Indicator (EnPI), based on the electricity consumption of battery formation (a difficult and rather expensive parameter to measure), is introduced to assess its energy efficiency. Therefore, a Soft Sensor to measure the electricity consumption in real-time (based on the voltage and current measured during battery formation), and to calculate the EnPI is developed. Moreover, Energy Management (EM), aided by the use of energy baselines and control charts is implemented to assess the energy performance of battery formation, allowing the implementation of rapid corrective actions toward higher efficiency standards. This resulted on the average in a 4.3% reduction of the electricity consumption in battery formation.

Desarrollo de un sistema de gestión energética en la clínica Portoazul

“…Para evitar la influencia de valores atípicos en el desarrollo de la línea base en el análisis estadístico se usa el filtrado de Hampel [22], que aplica la mediana de la desviación absoluta mAD (1):…”

Factors Affecting the Electricity Consumption and Productivity of the Lead Acid Battery Formation Process. The Case of a Battery Plant in Colombia

“…Battery formation is developed in formation circuits, where batches of batteries are formed simultaneously (Cabello et al, 2018;Jung et al, 2016;Pavlov, 2011). During this process, the paste covering the positive and negative cells undergoes electrochemical transformations when reacting with the sulfuric acid of the electrolyte, which transform the paste into an electrochemically active porous material.…”

“…An AC/DC rectifier per circuit, with a nominal input of 280 V (AC), 324 V (DC) output and maximum current of 130 A, is used to supply the direct current required in the formation process. Batteries are connected in series as shown in Figure 2 ( Sagastume et al, 2018;Cabello et al, 2018).…”

“…• The malfunctioning of the AC/DC rectifier, which causes an inadequate formation current and voltage, thus affecting the electricity consumption during the process • Malfunctioning of temperature sensors • Inadequate installation of cables and connectors, which causes higher losses and higher electricity consumption • Inadequate operational practices of the technical staff operators during the placement of batteries (i.e., inadequate installation of cables and connections on the battery, causing higher heat loss (Sagastume et al, 2018)) in the formation circuits • Limited supervision of the process, which causes that the battery batch remains connected to the formation circuit, long after the formation process is concluded (Cabello et al, 2018).…”

“…The time wasted is mainly the result of inadequate operational practices, and on the other hand, circuits in poor technical conditions that causes delays in the formation process affecting productivity, and additionally affecting the EEI (Sagastume et al, 2018). Addressing these factors can save electricity (Cabello et al, 2018) with measures like:…”