Battery Storage Degradation Management via Capacitor Recovery
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Solution Overview
Problem
The challenge lies in managing capacitors with varying degrees of degradation in battery energy storage systems, particularly in electric vehicles, where replacement capacitors are difficult to acquire and produce due to high costs and environmental concerns, especially when production ceases.
Innovation Solution
A battery energy storage system that includes a charge/discharge control unit and a management unit to differentiate and manage capacitors based on degradation levels, allowing for controlled charging/discharging, reuse, and efficient distribution, while incorporating unused capacitors and reusing those from electric vehicles to extend their lifespan and reduce waste.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If capacitors are continuously produced and stored for replacement, then replacement capacitors are available when needed, but production costs and storage costs increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a recycling system where capacitors from end-of-life electric vehicles are recovered, refurbished, and reintroduced into the market as replacement capacitors. This eliminates the need for continuous production and storage of new capacitors, significantly reducing production and storage costs while maintaining availability of replacement units.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a multi-functional system that serves both as an electric vehicle battery system and as a capacitor supply system. The same capacitor units are used in vehicles until degradation, then recovered and redistributed as replacement capacitors to other vehicles, maximizing resource utilization and eliminating the need for dedicated replacement stockpiles.
2Reliability
If dedicated capacitors are assembled for specific products, then product performance is optimized, but replacement becomes difficult when production ceases
Solution Approach 1:
The system recovers dedicated capacitors from end-of-life vehicles and refurbishes them for continued use in other vehicles. This creates a closed-loop system where product-specific capacitors remain optimized for their original applications while maintaining long-term replaceability through recovery and redistribution programs.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent monitors capacitor degradation parameters (capacity, internal resistance, temperature characteristics) and adjusts usage patterns, charging protocols, and operational parameters based on degradation state. This extends capacitor life and maintains performance characteristics even as capacitors age and are redistributed across different applications.
3Productivity
If capacitors are monitored and managed individually by degradation level, then optimal usage is achieved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements self-service through automated monitoring of capacitor degradation parameters, algorithmic determination of optimal usage patterns, and automatic redistribution decisions. The management system autonomously tracks capacity, internal resistance, and temperature characteristics of each capacitor, adjusting charge/discharge protocols and redistribution timing without requiring complex manual intervention.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates continuous feedback loops that monitor capacitor performance parameters (capacity retention, internal resistance growth, temperature rise) and use this data to adjust operational parameters, predict remaining useful life, and trigger redistribution actions. This feedback-driven approach optimizes capacitor usage while keeping management complexity manageable through automated decision-making algorithms.
Data Source
AI summary
A battery energy storage system is provided with: a charging/discharging control device capable of controlling charging/discharging of each of a plurality of electricity storage units in accordance with the supply and demand state of a power system; and a management device for adjusting the progression of deterioration of each of the electricity storage units by differentiating the charging/discharging amount of each of the electricity storage units and managing by differentiating the electricity storage units having a low degree of progression of deterioration from the electricity storage units having a high degree of progression deterioration.