‘Quantum Leap’ in Battery Innovations Presented at Eurobike

FRIEDRICHSHAFEN, Germany – Two of the world’s biggest battery suppliers presented major innovations at last week’s Eurobike. Panasonic showed its newly developed 20700 cell. BMZ, however, topped that with the world 1st 21700 cell. With the company’s new 3Tron battery system the lifespan of an e-bike battery is increased to 12 years, claims BMZ.

 

 

http://bike-eu.com.s3-eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/app/uploads/2016/09/Bike-Europe-BMZ-Battery-Innovations-272x210.png

BMZ’s 3Tron battery system will be produced with big 21700 cells (21mm diameter and 70mm high). Together with stronger conductors and much more active cell material 3Tron offers 12 year lifespan! – Photo BMZ

BMZ, which is Europe’s biggest battery supplier not only for e-bikes but also for tools, household and gardening appliances, announced its ‘true quantum leap’ in e-bike battery technology in Friedrichshafen. Such leap is needed as electric bikes in particular usually have a much longer lifespan than their batteries. This is commonly a battery with a 18650-cell format. According to BMZ such a battery is exhausted after 3 years at most when its maximum number of charge cycles is reached.

 

Less heat and up to 60% more capacity

BMZ, together with another global battery player, managed to develop batteries that offer a much longer lifespan thanks to the fact that the new batteries create less heat and has up to 60% more capacity. BMZ says on this, “The increased lifespan of up to 12 years is thanked to the fact that the 60% more capacity allows for a radical reduction in charging cycles, the real battery killers. The need for occasional quick recharges is also greatly decreased.”

 

3Tron system

BMZ further claims that its new 3Tron system offering a lifespan twice to three times as long as standard batteries will ‘revolutionize e-bike batteries’. Europe’s biggest battery supplier says, “With 3Tron, BMZ is putting its trust in a completely new format: instead of a 18650 (18mm diameter and 65mm high) cell size, 3Tron will be produced as a size 21700 cell (21mm diameter and 70mm high). The increase in output would not be possible with the standard format. The 3Tron battery system, as the first 21700 format system worldwide, is setting the standard in this new class – because it is clear that other manufacturers will follow and produce 21700 format batteries as well: the development possibilities of the 18650 cell format are exhausted.”

 

50% increase in energy supply

The 3Tron system also comes with high quality materials as stronger conductors which are built into the 21700 cell while the proportion of active cell material has been significantly increased. “This allows a full 50% increase in energy supply. Thanks to low internal resistance, the output increases by 68%. And the 3Tron’s discharge current is actually four times higher than that of standard battery cells. The new 3Tron battery is not only stronger, longer-lasting and higher in endurance than a 18650 cell, it is also lighter due to the premium materials used – as if predestined for the e-bike field,” claims BMZ.

 

The 3Tron power packs will be assembled in Europe’s giga battery factory: at BMZ in Karlstein, Germany.

 

Panasonic new 20700 cells

Also Panasonic presented bigger battery cells at last week’s Eurobike. Their newly developed 20700 cell (20mm diameter and 70mm high) is in particular targeting e-MTBs that have downtube mounted batteries. By the way, Eurobike indicated that integrating the battery in the downtube is currently the general trend among electric Mountainbikes. Panasonic says on its 20700 cell, “This battery call has been developed for compact and integrated designs.” Panasonic offers two 36V integrated battery versions with 8 and 12Ah allowing for 288 and 432Wh.

 

 

 

Photo

• http://bike-eu.com.s3-eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/app/uploads/2016/09/Bike-Europe-Panasonic-20700-Battery-Cell-560x420.jpg?3390386365775571008
  Also Panasonic presented bigger battery cells for compact and integrated batteries mounted on e-MTBs downtubes. – Photo Bike Europe
   
  

Published by Jack Oortwijn on 6 Sep 2016

last update: 6 Sep 2016

 

http://ebiketips.co.uk/content/news/huge-leaps-in-e-bike-battery-capacity-demoed-at-eurobike-428?utm_content=buffer47b0c&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer

A quantum leap is an extremely small movement at sub-atomic level.

I'm having buttered toast for my tea today. In the morning I'm going to look down the back of the settee to see if I can find a £1 coin. If I get one, I'll be down Aldi for a jar of jam. Things might be looking up.

but Tesla will take all the jam for there cars lol

Was that a flying pig just went by?

 

SW I already posted a link to that 2 days ago. Hey! First post!

The Panasonic looks to be the most believable out of the two. Thanks for the post sw, good times ahead.

 

Now where did I put me jar of Hartley's

Not sure what all the negativity regarding this post is about. Larger format cylindrical cells are definitely happening, the driver being simpler (cheaper) construction of large capacity packs with fewer points of failure. Larger cells also make integrated cooling easier with larger spaces between individual cells. I wouldn't call it a 'quantum leap' though (whatever that means), just evolution.

Edited September 10, 20169 yr by danielrlee

but Tesla will take all the jam for there cars lol

I think you're on to something there. The canteen at the new gigafactory must be huge and I bet they serve a lot of toast in the morning. Im sure that with Tesla being such a forward thinking company, must have already accounted for 'peak jam' though.

I'm having buttered toast for my tea today. In the morning I'm going to look down the back of the settee to see if I can find a £1 coin. If I get one, I'll be down Aldi for a jar of jam. Things might be looking up.

 

I'm sure there must be cheaper and better Chinese jars of jam on ebay.

I'm having buttered toast for my tea today. In the morning I'm going to look down the back of the settee to see if I can find a £1 coin. If I get one, I'll be down Aldi for a jar of jam. Things might be looking up.

I'm actually surprised you're not going to knock up a batch of DIY jam yourself.

Edited September 10, 20169 yr by danielrlee

Meanwhile in the UK there are signs of progress in the new Stack of Lemon slices and old penny batteries, self generating power cell technology.

 

Unfortunately there will be a delay as the Expected EU research grant is no longer available.

 

And due to the falling value of the pound the price of Lemons has made them prohibitively expensive, which has meant the diversion of research resources to locally grown Rhubarb being tested as an alternative source of acid.

Thanks to a Government initiative to encourage British Industry.

Edited September 10, 20169 yr by oldgroaner

According to BMZ such a battery is exhausted after 3 years at most when its maximum number of charge cycles is reached.

“The increased lifespan of up to 12 years is thanked to the fact that the 60% more capacity allows for a radical reduction in charging cycles, the real battery killers. The need for occasional quick recharges is also greatly decreased.”

 

I like the BMZ maths:

 

Existing batteries 3 years life.

 

New battery increases capacity by 60%.

 

Their claim of a 12 year life being due to the reduction in charges is an increase of 300%.

.

More math:

 

We need the same power in a 60% smaller form factor

We need 60% more power in the same form factor

We need the same power 60% cheaper or a rise in revenue so that all people in the EU (sorry, not you...) get the same amount as the Germans and can all afford a 2500€ pedelec new every two years...

This is the way forward

This is the way forward

We had threads about that four years ago when they were just about to go into production. I can also remember meeting their sales guy on the Oxygen stand at the 2012 NEC Cycle show.

 

I didn't find that £1 that I mentioned above, so I'm still eating plain toast.

http://www.alakazam.co.uk/skimm-T3JpZ2luYWxQYXRoPS92YXIvd3d3L3Zob3N0cy9hbGFrYXphbS5jby51ay9odHRwZG9jcy91cGxvYWRzL3Byb2R1Y3Qvb3JpZ2luYWwvSW1hZ2UxMzExMl80Y2Q5NGU5ZjVlOGY3LmpwZyZ3PTQ2MCZoPTQ2MCZIZWlnaHRNb2RlPXRydWUmc3Q9MTE=.jpg

 

There you go d8veh

The BMZ and particularly the Panasonic cells do seem a bit more real world likely than most battery innovations.

 

I reckon batteries are the weak link in ebikes, so any improvement is welcome.

 

Top of my wish list is more range.

You could just carry more/larger batteries....

 

Of course though, it would always be nice to have higher energy/power densities than what is available, but I don't consider current lithium batteries lacking enough to call them a weak link. I certainly consider them reliable enough when used within certain operating parameters and haven't personally had any issues with cells or packs I've purchased within the last four years.

 

To reach their limits, you'd have to push them to extremes and I think that you'd reach the limits of silicon power density of the MOSFET's inside controllers before the limits of the battery would become apparent, at least when using high discharge LiPo pouches.

I like to do 50-100 mile+ rides, so have no choice but to carry spare batteries.

 

The bike rides better with a single battery, so a greater capacity battery would enable me to do more rides without the need to carry a spare.

 

My Bosch batteries have been reliable and reasonably long lasting, but their performance must decline at some point, so a '12-year' battery would be a worthwhile improvement.

 

The electrics and motors on my two bikes have all been reliable, the Bosch motor has plenty of poke for me - I rarely use the higher power settings - and the controller does a good job of delivering the power smoothly.

 

Which leaves the battery as the weakest link in the chain.

It makes sense when you put it like that, although a heavier bike is not a showstopper. I suppose this is one of those things that is down to your individual goals.

 

If your aim is extreme power and you ran top end components, the battery wouldn't be first to give up the ghost. Of all the electronic components, the controller would, probably followed by the motor.

 

I'd like cheaper batteries and we should get this in the long run as they are produced in greater and greater quantities, whatever the format.

Was that a flying pig just went by?

 

SW I already posted a link to that 2 days ago. Hey! First post!

Hey...

When I was a boy and had a growing interest in cars.. my mates dad had a "flying pig".

Thanks for bringing back that memory!

My very own quantum leap, mounted yesterday. I am drawing peak 0.75C rather than 1.5C and voltage sag is 0.6 V rather than 5 V at peak Amps...

 

 

Cost 225.73€ for +16 Ah usable from 20 Ah. A quality Li-ion battery of the same capacity is >600€. OK you get a BMS instead of lipo alarms...

Nothing stopping you from ditching the LiPo alarms and hooking up a BMS instead.

Write to bmsbattery and ask for 3.65 V cutoff and 4.15 V charge max

Get bms with wrong cutoff values, send back

Repeat till they get it right

Solder lots of tiny, tiny wires

...

 

Or plug and ride. The new alarms do cut off at 3.65 volts rather than 3.6 or 3.7, I'll be having some more of those.

I'd rather have to fiddle with my battery once, rather than at every charge and every ride, but each to their own I guess.

 

EDIT: If I'm being totally truthful, I neither use a BMS nor lipo alarms, but still bulk charge and haven't balanced my packs in over six months. I'd never reconmend it for anyone who has to ask about what's involved though.

Edited September 11, 20169 yr by danielrlee