Product category:
Batteries, chargers and circuit protection
News Release from: Saft Industrial Batteries | Subject: Intensium Flex
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 21 June 2005
Smart batteries adapt to industrial uses
The Intensium Flex battery system has been developed to provide fully integrated "plug and play" smart solutions to suit the various power requirements of a wide variety of industrial users.
Saft is leading the way in the industrial application of lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery technology with its new Intensium Flex system developed to provide fully integrated "plug and play" smart solutions to suit the various power requirements of a wide variety of industrial and telecomms users Thanks to its versatile, modular rackable design, Intensium Flex can be configured to provide any system voltage from 24 to 720V for pure standby float or high frequency cycling applications, and discharge patterns ranging from high energy (hours or days of discharge) to very high power demands over minutes or seconds
This article was originally published on Engineeringtalk on 21 Feb 2000 at 8.00am (UK)
Related stories
Unbiased battery comparison software!
Saft's new free software compares within seconds the suitability of different types of industrial batteries according to user-defined criteria - and it doesn't always recommend Saft's own batteries.
Credit Suisse changes to nickel-cadmium batteries
Credit Suisse Group, the global banking and insurance group, has become the first major bank to adopt nickel-cadmium (Ni-Cd) batteries to guarantee the power supply to critical computer systems.
Typical Intensium Flex applications will include: industrial power backup, such as high power UPS systems; renewable energy systems - to provide spinning reserve and power quality functions; and telecomms, especially cellular base transceiver stations (BTS).
Saft Li-ion technology offers a number of advantages for industrial battery users such as high power and energy density - providing savings in both space and weight, zero-maintenance, long calendar and service life, operation at both high and low temperatures and state of charge and state of health indication.
However, until now, the integration of the major battery functions (power, intelligence, safety and assembly) into a customised Li-ion battery system required dedicated product developments, with the inherent time and cost restraints.
As a result, Li-ion batteries have only been available for specific high end markets such as military or EV (electric vehicles) or within a limited spectrum of voltage and current applications.
With Intensium Flex, Saft is opening up the potential applications for Li-ion technology by offering all its advantages within a stand-alone "plug and play" smart battery system.
Further reading
World's most powerful storage battery to be built
Saft, the battery company, has won an order worth around US$10million for the design and manufacture of the world's most powerful storage battery, capable of supplying 40 MW of power
Rechargeable Ni-Cd battery for onboard rail use
A new battery has been purpose designed to provide the perfect high performance on-board battery system for LRV, metro, EMU, locomotive and high speed rail systems
Island batteries are long-term survivors
Specialist photovoltaic rechargeable nickel-cadmium batteries still going strong nine years after they were installed on a remote island in the archipelago of Stockholm.
This modular design, with integrated onboard control, communication and safety functions, can readily be adapted to meet the specific needs of a customer without significant development time and costs.
Intensium Flex is based on 24V modular base units that occupy the height of a one and a half rack units (1.5U) within a standard 19in ETSI rack.
The modules are hot-pluggable and completely maintenance free and can enable a battery system to be customised to provide the optimum battery configuration, with series strings of up to 720V and up to 16 parallel strings.
This flexible modular approach offers both ease of installation and deployment and is scalable to allow reconfiguration and expansion to meet a customer's changing needs.
The Intensium Flex battery modules are available in three versions: high power, medium power or high energy.
The high power module provides more than 8kW of power (equivalent to a power density of 1000W/litre).
The high energy module provides 120Wh/litre and the medium power module provides a well balanced compromise of power and energy suitable for discharges of 10min and above.
Intensium Flex can be configured for such 400 to 600V systems requiring typically between 1 and 15min of backup.
It can avoid the usual oversizing of lead-acid batteries, and reduce significantly the floorspace and overall number of cabinets in such an installation.
The intermittent nature of renewable energies makes energy storage devices unavoidable.
Whether in PV (photovoltaic) systems requiring several days of energy storage (typically 48V, several hundreds of ampere-hours), or for medium power cycling in hybrid applications, or for high voltage wind power output stabilisation, Intensium Flex provides highly efficient and maintenance-free energy storage and power buffers for all existing and future renewable energy applications.
Cellular BTS and small outdoor access applications require 48V batteries capable of 8h discharges.
Telecomms operators are looking for batteries capable of providing increased energy densities in existing, limited spaces, with resistance to the harsh conditions of outdoor operations (mainly high temperature) and ensuring reliable and troublefree operation over many years.
Intensium Flex builds on Saft's wealth of experience in the design, manufacture and supply of Li-ion based rechargeable battery systems for a wide variety of demanding roles in aerospace, defence and civil applications.
Each module comprises seven Saft VL cylindrical Li-ion cells manufactured on long-established, high-output production lines in Bordeaux, France.
For maximum performance and safety, this advanced design Li-ion cell uses a nickel-based negative alloy, doped with aluminium and cobalt.
Intensium Flex is the latest addition to Saft's Intensium range of Li-ion battery solutions and will be ready for testing in the summer of 2005, with industrial production planned for 2006.
In 2004 Saft launched Intensium 1, a 48V Li-ion battery in rackable modules for telecomms micro-BTS stations, and at Intelec in Berlin (18th to 22nd September 2005) Saft will launch a new 48V Intensium Li-ion battery system developed specifically for telecomms applications. Request a free brochure from Saft Industrial Batteries ...
• Saft Industrial Batteries: contact details and other news
• Email this article to a colleague
• Register for the free Engineeringtalk email newsletter
• Engineeringtalk Home Page
Search the Pro-Talk network of sites
