Battery Charging Control with Temporary Discharge to Limit Lithium Plating
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing battery technologies face challenges in minimizing lithium precipitation on the negative electrode during charging, which leads to battery degradation, reduced efficiency, and safety risks, particularly during high-speed charging.
Innovation Solution
Implement a multi-stage charging protocol with a temporary discharging procedure between charging stages, adjusting current rates based on State Of Charge (SOC) to prevent lithium precipitation and compensate for SOC changes, using a battery control apparatus with a measuring unit, memory, and processor to manage the charging process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If high-speed charging is performed, then charging efficiency is improved, but lithium precipitation on the negative electrode surface is accelerated
Solution Approach 1:
The charging process is divided into multiple stages with different current rates. The processor identifies SOC ranges and applies different current rates (first current rate for lower SOC, second current rate for higher SOC) to prevent lithium precipitation while maintaining charging efficiency. This segmentation of the charging process into distinct phases allows optimization for both speed and safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The current rate is dynamically adjusted based on the identified SOC of the battery. The processor continuously monitors SOC and changes the current rate from the first current rate to the second current rate as SOC increases, creating a dynamic charging protocol that adapts to the battery's state to prevent lithium precipitation.
2Object-generated harmful factors
If multi-stage charging protocol with different current rates is used, then lithium precipitation is suppressed, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The processor continuously identifies the SOC of the battery based on voltage measurement values and uses this feedback to determine when to switch between different current rates. This feedback mechanism allows the system to automatically adjust the charging protocol based on real-time battery state, simplifying the control logic while maintaining effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The battery control apparatus autonomously manages the multi-stage charging protocol by automatically identifying SOC ranges and selecting appropriate current rates without external intervention. The system self-regulates the charging process based on pre-stored protocol data and real-time measurements, reducing operational complexity.
3Object-generated harmful factors
If temporary discharging procedure is performed, then lithium precipitation is reduced, but charging time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The temporary discharging procedure is performed as a preliminary action between charging stages to prevent lithium precipitation before it becomes problematic. By proactively removing excess lithium during the charging process, the system avoids the need for more extensive discharging later, ultimately maintaining efficient charging while preventing degradation.
Data Source
AI summary
A battery control apparatuses may include a measuring unit for measuring a voltage of a battery, a memory for storing a multi-stage charging protocol data, and a processor for identifying a SOC of the battery based on the voltage measurement value. The processor may perform a temporary discharging procedure, when the SOC of the battery reaches the first criterion SOC while the constant current charging procedure using the first current rate is in progress. The processor may also determine an adjusted second current rate different from the second current rate based on discharging information of the temporary discharging procedure and, after the temporary discharging procedure is finished, perform a constant current charging procedure using the adjusted second current rate.