How many cells?
Temperature range
How many cycles does the battery need to last?
Maintain charge for 6 months when disconnected from system
Any issues with putting these in space?
18650 LiIon and LiFePO4 seem the most promising
Please see my Google Document for proper formatting of the information below (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1p9kTVuLybprFHwl5PUBbfloFPVZcuzbY6f55i-4UpEw/edit?usp=sharing)
My research includes: Informational website links, Factors to consider, Battery Examples Pt 1 (Other Design Group Solutions - No links for buying)Battery Examples (Power Modules) Pt 2 (Online Shopping), Research (Cell Batteries vs Plate Batteries).
Electrical Source Comparison Chart (with best 18650 battery suggestions)
**https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Y7Yu7VFS7OYBugsCg9h1vWVzj4OYK0a6LfXPBRgkhBI/edit?usp=sharing**
Research from the Google Document
Factors to Consider
Compare sells cost, spreadsheet, specs, what you recommend
ALL DC batteries
Charging cycle
Deep cycle
Degradation
Density how much energy milliamperes per cm3 or gram
Lost of energy in little space
Battery chem
Air space agency clearance, reports,Radiation hardened - special electronics
Temp tolerance - CubeSat equilibrium temperature is about 297 K or 24 °C.
40° to 60°C
Electronics operating temperature typically range from -25 to 85°C, solar panels range from -85 to 100°C, and batteries range from -40° to 60°C [3]. At any given time the CubeSat would have at most three faces facing the sun, while the other faces were in the shadow facing and absorbing the earth's albedo.
https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://www.google.com/&httpsredir=1&article=7740&context=etd_theses
CubeSats use solar cells to convert solar light to electricity that is then stored in rechargeable lithium-ion batteries that provide power during eclipse as well as during peak load times. ... Due to size and weight constraints, common CubeSats flying in LEO with body-mounted solar panels have generated less than 10 W.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CubeSat
Complex, foldout solar panels and higher quality batteries can increase the maximum power budget, However, physical CubeSat size restricts the area available for solar panels. Typically, the 1U, 2U, and 3U CubeSats' maximum power budgets range from 1 to 2.5 Watts, 2 to 5 Watts, and 7 to 20 Watts, respectively [10].
http://www.ann.ece.ufl.edu/pubs_and_talks/Aero12_arnold_ERB.pdf
Battery Examples Pt 1
(Other Design Group Solutions - No links for buying)
EPS – BATTERY Sizing and Choices Tables (http://www.ece3sat.com/pdf/Batteries.pdf)
http://www.imtsrl.it/battery-pack.html
High Energy Density of Lithium ion battery pack for nano-satellites. The unit can be customized depending on mission requirements (4P / 2S 2P / 4S). Other configurations are available (up to 16 cells).
The standard configuration provides 2S 2P configuration (42 Whr) and 8.4V terminal voltage at end of charge.
Each cell is provided with a heater to prevent cold temperature (below -5°C) monitored by 2 temperature sensors. Over protection, as overcurrent, overcharge, over-discharge are implemented. The unit is fully compliant with other Cubesat Subsystem.
https://www.aac-clyde.space/satellite-bits/batteries
The AAC Clyde Space OPTIMUS range of CubeSat batteries are amongst the most flown spacecraft battery in history.
The combination of using strings of cells connected in parallel, with cell protection electronics, means that our CubeSat batteries are robust, resilient and offer inherent redundancy. In addition, the use of protected parallel strings allows us to easily and safely scale the battery to meet different mission requirements.
Unlike many in the industry, we purchase our battery cells in large batches and then subject the cells to extensive LOT acceptance testing. During this process we also qualify a large portion of the cells to the NASA ISS requirements. The high quality of the cell and battery builds make them perfect for the use the challenging environment of space.
Spacecraft developers can't take chances with battery selection as it is so critical to the success of the mission. Having already demonstrated excellent performance on orbit on over 100 missions over the last 10 or more years, our battery ticks all the right boxes.
https://gomspace.com/shop/subsystems/power/3u-powerpack-(1).aspx
Complete power system for 3U-nanosatellite
GomSpace power systems provides a full power solution for any Cubesat mission in a compact space including maximum power point tracking, charging management, managed power distribution and batteries on a single board.
PowerPacks include a full configuration of the basic NanoPower boards with solar panels and harness on larger cubesats.
PowerPacks are compatible with other vendor structures and integrate seamlessly with other GomSpace products, e.g. the NanoMind on-board computers and related software products for mission management and attitude determination and control.
The 3U Power Pack includes a power supply, battery pack and full solar panel set for a 3U nanosatellite:
Main features:
https://satsearch.co/products/german-orbital-systems-gmb-h-cube-sat-battery-pack
Our company is a spin-off from the TU Berlin. Being one of the most renowned addresses in Europe when it comes to satellite technology, the TU Berlin has successfully launched 10 satellites. Following the design philosophy and using the component base from these projects allows us to provide reliable and robust solutions for small satellites at a market transforming price. Our battery pack is a lightweight and costsaving solution for small satellites. It is fully compatible with our CubeSat structures and every small satellite using the PC-104 standard. It already has flight heritage from multiple missions and has proven itself as a reliable power supply during these missions.
https://satsearch.co/products/imt-srl-cubesat-battery-pack
High Energy Density of Lithium ion battery pack for nano-satellites. The unit can be customized depending on mission requirements (4P / 2S 2P / 4S). Other configurations are available (up to 16 cells). The standard configuration provides 2S 2P configuration (42 Whr) and 8.4V terminal voltage at end of charge. Each cell is provided with a heater to prevent cold temperature (below -5°C) monitored by 2 temperature sensors. Over protection, as overcurrent, overcharge, over-discharge are implemented. The unit is fully compliant with other Cubesat Subsystem. The IMT has an internal Cell Acceptance Test Procedure, the procedure is composed by different steps to investigate the manufacturing and state of conservation of the cells. Visual inspection, mechanical and electrical measurements, X-Rays, DPA (on sample basis), Automated Charge/Discharge/Internal Resistance measure, Vibration, Vacuum tests are parts of the IMT Procedure. The customer can qualify his battery pack thanks our Battery Test Facility.
Cylindrical 18650 (18 mm diameter and 65 mm height) COTS cells are widely used for CubeSats, due to their suitable size and generally good tolerance for the space environment. Li-ion battery family covers multiple chemistries, in this case, their anode is typically graphite or other carbon-based materials.
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwj3k9Hx2anxAhUWbs0KHd1-AsMQFjAFegQIGRAD&url=https%3A%2F%2Fres.mdpi.com%2Fd_attachment%2Fenergies%2Fenergies-13-04097%2Farticle_deploy%2Fenergies-13-04097-v2.pdf&usg=AOvVaw0NdDPDT-FTFgpQREed4ntG
Battery Examples (Power Modules) Pt 2
(Online Shopping)
Power modules. See what to add
https://www.endurosat.com/cubesat-store/cubesat-power-modules/eps-power-module/
The way the batteries are wired affects the final amperage or voltage of the battery bank.
The way the batteries are wired affects the final amperage or voltage of the battery bank.
https://www.cubesatshop.com/product/ba0x-high-energy-density-battery-array/
As thin as 7 millimetres thick, the EXA BA0x High Energy Density Battery Array is a family of power store/delivery devices designed to provide the highest energy capacity and redundancy: From a minimum of 22.2Whr to a maximum of 50Whr per bank. For missions like 1U Cubesats, the BA0x enables your system to perform longer and better and pack even more power than a 3U configuration, the double-sided arrays are user-configurable to output 3.7V or 7.4V. All our batteries are fully customizable to your mission’s need in terms of output, cable, connectors or interfaces and options are available as integrated Carbon Nanotubes Thermal Transfer Bus (CN/TTB) shield which allows missions to reuse the spacecraft self-generated heat, integrated MT01 Magnetorquer, embedded redundant thermal sensors and embedded redundant active heaters.
The BA0x battery family is a cells-only array battery, no electronics onboard, this liberates you to select whatever EPS system you like or already have and supercharge it in order to obtain the best from any product you may have selected without compromising your system standards, the BA0x family can integrate with almost any EPS system actually in the market. When coupled with our DSA family of deployable solar arrays based on artificial muscles, the BA0x batteries are capable to provide even longer mission lifetimes, as our own satellites can attest: Almost 4 years in orbit and still working.
Every array is tested and qualified in our own facilities and shipped with full reports and packed with additional match connectors interfaces. Check the paper in the documents section of the product to know more about in-orbit test results and the engineering of the batteries, the BA0x family has flight heritage since 2013 in 4 missions.
Cell Batteries
Pros: More efficient
Emits energy using chemical reaction
Cons: Weight
Cost
A cell: single anode and cathode separated by electrolyte used to produce a voltage and current
Single Cell circuits may require a DC/DC converter.
Batteries are made up of one or more cells.
Batteries with one cell are considered ‘single cell batteries‘.
Batteries with more than one cell have one positive and one negative terminal and are connected internally in series
A cell is a metallic cathode (positive), a metallic anode (negative) and electrolyte.
The combinations of metals used in the cathode, anode, and the liquid/material that makes up the electrolyte determine strengths and weaknesses.
“The basic cell of a battery uses two pieces of different metal – known as the cathode(positive) and the anode (negative). Internally, they are kept separate, but both are in contact with the same electrolyte where chemical reactions take place which create the electrical charge.
If the cathode and anode were connected to each other directly, the same chemical reaction would take place, but without any appliance to slow it down a massive amount of heat is generated which can lead to explosions or fires.”2