HEL participates in the EV Battery Forum in Barcelona

“HEL participated in the EV Battery Forum in Barcelona this month – in the grand surroundings of the Hotel Rey Juan Carlos I.

We were the only exhibitor of battery testing equipment – in our case Battery Testing Calorimeter (BTC) information, which includes thermal runaway testing adiabatically (ARC-testing) and an isothermal calorimeter that provides thermal management data. The conference presentations were concerned with all factors affecting EV adoption: infrastructure issues like charger availability, battery lifetime and of course…battery safety. After discussions with the delegates over the 2 days of the conference it became apparent that the thorough testing of batteries under all conditions was universally seen as essential, yet the majority of organizations – even large ones – lacked the equipment to do this effectively. There is at the moment a lack of awareness that HEL’s adiabatic (ARC) and isothermal (thermal management) data is even available and how it could help design Battery Management Systems. Several presentations highlighted the future requirement for ever larger batteries that can be charged in ever shorter times suggesting that the need for this testing will only grow. HEL’s growing range of test capability, which now also includes automated nail penetration as well as several other “abuse” tests will be well placed to supply this vital equipment as the industry develops.''



For further information on our adiabatic calorimeter, please click here and for information on our isothermal BTC, please click here

HEL’s participation in the Advanced Automative Battery conference in Orlando

HEL participated for the first time in the AABC Conference in Florida, both having an exhibition booth and making a technical presentation by HEL's managing director Dr Jasbir singh.

Click here to view video.

The technical program for the conference is highly scientific in nature both strong commercial presence but also many academics in attendance. HEL's presentation that was delivered looked into the complementary role of adiabatic ("ARC-Type") calorimetery for battery thermal runaway testing and isothermal (controlled) measurement of heat release to provide the thermal management duty specification. HEL's standard BTC is now an established benchmark for runaway thermal testing of EV and other high energy batteries with the ability to test large batteries and packs.

The isothermal BTC version, iso-BTC, is relatively new generated a lot of interest among attendees and people were generally convinced that this is an essential part of the safety should be supplied. Knowing how much heat is generated when discharging Li-ion batteries can be used to design cooling systems controlled from a BMS. HEL's approach this form of heat measurement has the attraction of being on-line and providing a unique into the workings of batteries which developers can make use of to improve battery design.

HEL’s range of Chemical Reactors and Thermal Hazard Testing capability

Enerrgy, batteries and safety, all relate to HEL's range of chemical reactors and thermal hazard testing capability, which at the moment are undergoing rapid development as governments and industry respond to global warming. A lot of research into bio-fuels, especially using non-food items as the source, involves high pressure chemistry and catalysis which fit perfectly with HEL’s flowCAT and HP Chemcan systems for performing hydrogenation, oxidation and carbonylation reactions (among others). HEL’s unique position arises from the ability to design compact, “analytical-looking” instruments even though complex high pressure and temperature operations are involved yet operability is rendered simple and fast.

The other side of the energy equation is to look ahead to renewable sources which will then require the use of batteries for storage and transportation applications. Battery technology has a long way to go but even the current favourite which is based around Li-ion chemistry poses huge fire/explosion risks unless handled correctly. This leads to HEL’s position as the leading provider of the widest range of calorimetry tools to enable understanding of the chemistry (using typically SIMULAR reaction calorimeter), direct simulation of the thermal runaway risk (with “ARC” type adiabatic calorimeters such as the Battery Testing Calorimeter, BTC) and design of suitable thermal management systems to prevent battery explosive runaway (with the isothermal version of the BTC which directly provides the information for a BMS).

The last of these, iso-BTC, was launched only recently and has huge potentially for providing the heat load that battery thermal management systems must cope with, in order to prevent thermal runaway and explosion. The principle involved here is similar to that used by HEL for years in their reaction calorimeters and the challenge is to translate this to batteries and packs which can be cylindrical, pouch and prismatic in shape and widely different sizes.