Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Valence Epoch Li-ion Full-size Battery

Brent,

These Valence Technology Epoch Li-Phosphate batteries look interesting to me as a way to increase battery capacity and life as compared with AGM batteries I am now using. In my boat I use ten 12V AGM batteries each rated at 100 Ah that weigh 65 lbs each for my main battery pack. They make a model E27 which has the same form factor as the batteries I am using that has a capacity of 122 Ah and weighs only 41 lbs. As an example as a direct replacement in my boat I would get 22% more capacity with a weight reduction of 37% for the same 10 batteries. I can use the same onboard battery charger as I use for my AGM batteries and if you believe the manufacturer, have a cycle life 2000. The manufacturer does not say anything about venting gases during charging. With a 2-3 hour charge time, this would significantly reduce the turn around time between dives for my boat. It will be interesting to see what they sell for when they go on sale in March of 2008. There battery management unit also looks interesting as it will feed SOC data directly into my onobard PLC. This new battery technology is worth following.

Cliff

----- Original Message ----
From: Brent Hartwig <brenthartwig@hotmail.com>
To: PSUBSorg <personal_submersibles@psubs.org>
Sent: Tuesday, January 1, 2008 6:11:42 AM
Subject: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Valence Epoch Li-ion Full-size Battery

This is the third generation product we can look forward to.

http://www.valence.com/assets/pdf/evs_faq.pdf

Regards,
Brent Hartwig