Lithium-ion battery life

Solar photovoltaic (PV) — Energy Storage Systems (ESS)

What does battery life really mean?
There are two distinct, but inter-related ways that are used to
measure the life of lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries deployed in
ESS applications for solar photovoltaic (PV) installations –
calendar life and cycle life. Both are important.
Cycle life is expressed in terms of the number of charge and
discharge cycles that can be achieved depending to what level
the battery is discharged – its ‘depth of discharge’ or DOD.
It is influenced by both the DOD and the charging rate.
Cycle life at + 25°C/+ 77°F

Calendar life is simply how long the battery might be expected

to last in terms of calendar years. It is independent of how Number of cycles
10 000 000
much the battery is charged and discharged. But it is influenced
by the state of charge (SOC), which reflects how much charge is
1 000 000
kept in the battery, and its operating temperature.

100 000
Expected life for VL Li-ion cells according to temperature
(EOL for capacity loss of 20%)
10 000

Expected life (years)

20 1 000
18 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Depth of discharge (%)
16
14 Energy applications 70% capacity at EOL

12
10
8
6
4
When does a Li-ion battery reach
2 its end of life (EOL)?
0
20 30 40 50 60 70
Temperature (°C)
In contrast to other battery technologies, such as lead-acid
SOC 100% SOC 75% SOC 50% batteries, Li-ion batteries do not suffer from ‘sudden-death’
failure. Instead they exhibit a gradual decrease in performance
over their service life. So their end of life (EOL) is defined either
by a reduction in initial capacity (typically 20 to 30%) or increase
in impedance – which is important for power applications. It is
important to remember that a Li-ion battery is not ‘dead’ at its
EOL, it has simply reached a pre-defined measure of ageing.
Saft Li-ion batteries – lifetime tests Saft VL Li-ion batteries outperform
in real-world PV applications the competition
The Sol-ion project saw Li-ion batteries deployed for energy Tests carried out against other types of Li-ion battery show
storage in PV systems on the largest scale in Europe to date. that Saft’s VL Li-ion battery technology is superior in both
This provided the opportunity for Saft’s Li-ion battery to be calendar life and cycle life.
tested by independent research institutes(1) in different charge
and discharge cycle profiles.
Calendar life time
A key test focused on the realistic representation of the very
complex and random cycling experienced in a PV application, with Residual capacity
110%
micro-cycles due to PV intermittency superimposed on macro-
cycles due to energy demand shifting between day and evening. 100%

90%

Cycle profile defined for testing

80%
SOC (%) Combined cycles
100 End of life criteria
70%
90 Further usable area
80
60%
70 0 200 400 600 800 1.000
60 Times / Days

50 Saft Li-ion : 55°C, 85% SOC Li-ion type 1 : 50°C, 50% SOC
40 Li-ion type 2 : 50°C, 50% SOC Li-ion type 3 : 50°C, 50% SOC
30 Source: ISEA/RWTH/Bosch

© Saft – Document N° 21893-2-0514 – Edition: May 2014 – Data in this document is subject to change without notice and becomes contractual only after written confirmation. – Photo credits: Fotolia – R299/A
20

10
0 Calendar life testing is usually carried out at higher temperatures
0 60 120 180 240 300 360 420 420 420 420 420 720
Time (min)
in order to achieve meaningful results in a shorter time frame.
Test Conditions: In this case, one year calendar life time at 50°C corresponds
Temperature = 40 ° C
Charging current: 0.5 C (20.5 A)
to approximately 5.6 years at 25°C.
Discharge current: 1 C (41 A)

Cycling life time

Influence of the cycle depth on Saft’s battery system Residual capacity

110%

Relative capacity Macrocycles Combined cycles 100%

1,05

90%
1,00

0,95 80%

0,90 70% End of life criteria

Further usable area
0,85
60%
0 2.000 4.000 6.000
0,80
Equivalent full cycles

0,75 Saft Li-ion : 35°C, 60% DOD

0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000 Li-ion type 1 : 40°C, 100% DOD Li-ion type 2 : 35°C, 100% DOD
Equivalent full cycle (#)
Source: ISEA/RWTH/Bosch
The tests showed that Saft’s battery had a capacity loss of only 20% after the equivalent
of 6000 full cycles (1 full cycle = 100% of battery energy charged and discharged)
There are considerable differences in the cycle life offered by
the various types of Li-ion cell commercially available for PV
(1) All tests conducted by Institut für Stromrichtertechnik und Elektrische Antriebe
applications. The Saft battery maintains its high capacity,
(ISEA) at RWTH Aachen, Germany. even after more than 6,000 charge/discharge cycles.

Battery life time predictions – based on 20

years of practical and experimental evidence
The battery life time information presented here draws on Saft’s
Saft 20 years broad experience in R&D, technology development
12, rue Sadi Carnot
93170 Bagnolet - France and industrialization of Li-ion chemistry. Combined with Saft’s
Tel. : +33 1 49 93 19 18 capabilities in long term lab-testing, characterization and
Fax : +33 1 49 93 19 64 modeling, this ensures the complete accuracy and reliability
www.saftbatteries.com of the system life time and performance projections.