FAQ

Super B Lithium Batteries don't have specific automotive certifications, they do however comply with UN38.3 which is related to shock and vibration during transportation.

No, please refrain to just one battery type per system.

This is an extra option already installed and operational on some large electric vehicle systems with parallel battery systems. It gives the reassurance that in the event of a single point fault the remaining portion of the battery pack will continue to provide energy. It is enabled through extra control and switching wiring and also involves an additional level of management control supervision which Super-B have developed and can support.

No, chargers need to be suitable for lithium. Higher capacity batteries can also create higher currents, which emphasize the need of thicker cables.

• Ingress Protection (IP) Ratings.
• We recommend that the lithium batteries are installed in a location where direct application of water is avoided and certainly there should be no pooling of water on any surface of the battery. A covered tray is ideal but it does not need to be environmentally sealed. Tray designs should incorporate measures to prevent direct exposure to large volumes of water and also incorporate drainage if the worst should happen.
• As with all batteries with exposed terminals it is strongly advisable where salt spray is a possibility that it should not be able build up around electrical connections.
• In all situations a periodic visual inspection is recommended to check the integrity of the tray.
• Note that the Nomia lithium batteries are IP50 rated. Epsilon is rated IP51.

The fundamental safety rule is that lithium batteries at different states of charge should not be connected together. Electrical isolation of batteries at different states of charge must be maintained until all modules in the pack (including the new replacement) are fully charged. For help to achieve this it is strongly advisable to contact the Applications Engineering team for support. Only certified technicians are allowed to modify power cabling and installations.

The important factors are to match:

• the battery pack voltage and system minimum and maximum voltages.
• the battery capacity in Amp hours needs to be matched with nominal current consumption and run-time.
• the system peak discharge current must be carefully matched to battery specification and if necessary a larger capacity pack chosen to prevent overheating.
• the total weight and dimensions also need to balance with these overall factors.

• At higher temperature the capacity will be reduced and constant exposure will cause increasing capacity fade.
• At lower temperature the impedance will be higher reducing efficiency of charging and discharging.
• The BMS will protect the system from short term over temperature and low temperature operations but the installation must keep the batteries within the recommended temperature.

For the Nomia and Nomada series, it is possible to connect a maximum of 99 Li-ion batteries to the communication bus of the BCI / BIB.

Yes it is needed with EURO 6 engines, to stabilize the voltage and current.

This really depends on the environment and the typical energy usage profile. A small capacity pack which is being “worked hard” will generate more heat than larger capacity pack. (Ask us for advice!)

Any orientation is possible as there is no free electrolyte inside, however we recommend the terminals are upright, particularly when sideways mounted. (no upside down orientation with terminals on the bottom).

• They should be restrained from movement in all 3 axes without excessive single point pressure on the re-enforced plastic case.
• This can be accomplished by fitting them in a tray base with high density foam and insulated securing bar across the top to stop any vertical movement. It is advisable to keep terminals and communication terminals accessible for periodic inspection and in some applications allow space for cooling airflow.

• The present generation has been developed to match existing automotive industry
• BCI form factors and capacities, as well as being scalable to allow larger packs to be built up into complex physical dimensions

• Due to the way the lithium batteries are constructed from many internal cell blocks it is very important that during charging these cell blocks are allowed to balance (i.e. reach the same charge level), otherwise the total battery output performance would be limited by the cell block which is lowest charge state.
• This balancing should be performed as often as possible to keep the overall capacity optimum and ensure that all lithium batteries within a pack are contributing equally to the total output.

• The complex SOC algorithm has been developed by Super-B to give a prediction of the remaining capacity based on many real time measurements inside each of the modules. The accuracy of the SOC is very good but its linearity benefits from regular full charge (100% SOC) & cell balancing, and also from periodic discharge below approx. 20% where a re-calibration is performed on each module.
• Generally in vehicle applications we advise the period of this re-calibration can be determined during initial trials so that it can be incorporated within a timeframe alongside other service intervals.
• At low consumption it is important to note that the SOC of the battery can drift – a regular full charge of the batteries does help limit the drift.

• Only the chargers that have a float phase can be connected permanently to lithium iron phosphate batteries (LiFePO4).
• When batteries are fully charged the charger will remain in floating mode.

• Only the chargers that have a float phase can be connected permanently to lithium iron phosphate batteries (LiFePO4).
• When batteries are fully charged the charger will remain in floating mode.

• The Lithium phosphate chemistry (LiFePO4) does not exhibit any ‘memory’ effect in the way other types of batteries do, so remain usable across 100% of capacity. However, the batteries must remain above minimum voltage (>2.3V per cell block) to protect the cells from possible reverse currents. Once the battery reaches this minimum level it should not be left at this level and must be recovered up to its normal operational voltage as soon as possible.
• For the Epsilon the minimum voltage per cell is defined at 2.25V. For the Nomia lithium batteries it is 2.05V per cell block.
• In case of deep discharge we can sometimes recover the lihtium battery with a very low current. It is not recommended unless it is performed within our laboratory or in specific situations at the customer with Super B expert/engineering assistance.

• Yes there is a small self-discharge with traction batteries but they can be stored, when full, for up to 6 months without needing to be re-charged. Caution: the self-discharge is accelerated with higher storage temperature (>45 degrees C).
• The traction batteries have internal protection electronics which consume current and if stored need to be put into ‘shelf mode’ for reduced current drain.
• In all situations it is advisable to check the condition and state of charge periodically to ensure that batteries are not over discharged.

• Ideally lithium batteries should be charged in 3 stages:
1. Super B suggests C/3 for a better lifespan of the batteries & 1C as maximum charging current.
2. Allowed to equalize & balance cells at this level until fully charged
3. Return to float charge at 13.8V.
• This is similar to many intelligent lead acid chargers which commonly have 14.4V as an acceptable steady voltage in equalization phase.
• Apart from the charge current limits which are higher for Super B. For the rest the same applies for Super B lithium batteries.

Super B uses only CANopen protocol. We can support customers in interfacing & adapting to different protocols they are using.

A Battery Management System is necessary for control and protection during discharge and charging. The BMS provides CAN bus communication of battery status ‘state of charge’ and alarms etc. It may also be used without CAN bus interface with just basic analog inputs and outputs for simpler systems.

For the Nomia and Nomada series, it is possible to connect a maximum of 99 Li-ion batteries to the communication bus of the BCI / BIB.

Each module is programmed with individual ID number e.g. 001 and the BMS can address directly with each module on a shared communication channel.