Comparative Study of Commonly Used Batteries for Solar PV Applications

Abstract

The renewable energy source fluctuations could be reduced by applying the energy storage techniques, by storing the excess power generation for making it accessible for the daily life applications. Moreover, the photovoltaic systems could be more flexible, reliable as well has power cost reduction with the help of energy storage techniques. The most widely used energy storage technologies are the batteries which immediately convert the chemical energy contained in their active materials into electric energy via the electrochemical oxidation-reduction (redox) reaction. In this sense, the proposed study aimed to shed further light on selecting the most advanced rechargeable battery type and material based on their effectiveness and economic feasibility. The following storage batteries were chosen to be tested; Lithium (Lithium – polymer, Lithium – ion) and others Valve regulated lead acid batteries. Their charging/discharging characteristics were carried out based on their mode of operations. For charging, the constant current- constant voltage mode was used, while for the discharging, the constant current mode was applied. From which their electrical and performance parameters were calculated, based on it, it could be concluded that, Li-poly battery was the most suitable one for using in smart electronic devices and remote-control vehicles, owing to its high energy density, high specific energy, high power density, high specific power, low internal resistance, in addition to its very slim geometry which is attributed to gelled polymer electrolyte.

Keywords

• lithium (li)
• lithium-polymer (li-poly)
• battery
• lithium-ion (li-ion) battery
• valve regulated lead acid battery (vrla).