Sessions

Chris Pruitt, CEO and President, East Penn Manufacturing Co.

BCI Chairman Chris Pruitt welcomes Convention attendees and reviews BCI’s successes over the past year, and previews highlights of what to expect in the year ahead, as the association enters its second century.

James Martin, Director, S&P Global

A brief review of how low voltage batteries have evolved over the past century, followed by some ideas of what to expect as we begin the path of the next 100 years.

The BCI Innovation Award, presented each year in honor of Sally Breidegam Miksiewicz, collects, showcases and celebrates innovations from within the lead battery industry.

Meet the Expert – James Martin, Director, S&P Global

Neil Hawkes, CRU, United Kingdom

Lead prices have mostly tracked a steadier path than other base and battery metals, reflecting the importance of its long established ‘closed loop’ system of resilient replacement battery demand and recycling of scrap.

Market participants have been concerned about the broader global economic slowdown and stubborn inflation bearing down on metals demand and prices in the near-term. However, discussions rarely exclude some aspect of the global ‘green’ energy transition away from fossil fuels towards renewable power. This used to revolve mainly around the greater vehicle electrification path, but the scope now encompasses the wider energy storage story, including solar panels, wind turbines and battery energy storage systems for residential and industrial use. There is also more debate around the readiness of transmission networks to power this ‘green’ revolution. This presentation will address how the supply of lead and other battery raw materials are responding to demand and the implications for prices.

The Poster Showcase will support researchers in university, government and commercial settings in building awareness about the scientific opportunities, advancements and career objectives in today’s battery industry and to share cutting-edge science and technology across this critical industry.

Ray Kubis, Chairman, Gridtential Energy

Ray will provide a view of battery innovations to reach the market by 2030 across the leading incumbent and developing technologies. From lithium to lead based and all others.

John Howes, Principal, Redland Energy Group

Dr. Joseph Liedhegner, Director, Clarios

Xiaolin Li, Chief Scientist, Battery Development and Reliability team at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL)

The idea of sodium as an alternative resource in energy storage is receiving renewed attention from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). This panel features presentations from national laboratories and industry perspectives on challenges and opportunities for commercial applications.

Dr. Timothy Ellis, Advisor, American Research Group

Dr. Matthew Raiford, Technical Director, Consortium for Battery Innovation (CBI)

Dr. Alyssa McQuilling, Manager, Consortium for Battery Innovation (CBI)

On behalf of the DOE’s Office of Electricity, the National Energy Technology Laboratory announced the Storage Innovations 2030 Technology Liftoff in DE-FOA-0003020 in the Summer of 2023. This program builds upon the strategic focus of Storage Innovations 2030 to enable a long-duration capable energy storage technology $0.05/ kWh Levelized Cost of Storage (LCOS).  It encourages diverse partnerships of companies to pursue pre-competitive research and development projects. The American Battery Research Group (ABRG) and the Consortium for Battery Innovation (CBI) have developed a program with seven US battery manufacturers and three DOE National Laboratories in response to the opportunity.  Four task areas have been identified: testing of lead batteries against Long Duration Energy Storage (LDES) load profiles; atomic-scale analysis of lead battery components after utilization in the LDES; fundamental research into lead crystal structures; and use of case definition and modeling to drive understanding of how lead batteries can best reach the LCOS goals defined by SI 2030.

Samuel Gillard, Vice President, Strategic Marketing Innovations, Inc. (SMI)

DOE is the largest battery funding agency for battery technology but has not substantially funded lead-acid battery technology to date. As a former DOE Battery Technology Manager, this discussion will cover strategies for getting more support for the advancement of lead-acid battery technology.

Tim Fister, Materials Scientist, Argonne National Laboratory

Synchrotrons, like the Advanced Photon Source (APS), have proven to be an invaluable new tool for studying chemical reactions in lead batteries during operation. In the last year, APS has undergone a generational, ~$1B upgrade to its accelerator and beamlines that will result in X-rays up to 500 times brighter than the previous light source. Building from our previous work with industry, I will outline how improvements in beam size and coherence will provide even more detail into crystal growth and dissolution processes driving charge acceptance and cycle life in lead batteries.

Dr. Brian Berland, Senior Director, VRFB Products, Stryten Energy

Curtis Kirkeby, Director of Product Management, Open Energy Solutions Inc.

Kimberly Medford, President, ENTEK

Russ Weed, President, CleanTech Strategies

Several of the member companies of the Flow Battery Industry Group (FBIG) have successfully applied for and been awarded funding by the US DOE, including under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) and other programs. This includes DOE funding for building battery component manufacturing facilities in the US; large-scale (more than 50MWh) demonstration of multiple flow battery arrays with 10-hour discharges at regionally diverse utility sites; demonstration of medium-scale (12MWh) flow battery array with up to 24-hour discharge; piloting of 1MWh flow battery which utilizes organic carbon compounds as the active species in the electro-chemistry; and research, development & demonstration of innovative flow battery manufacturing capabilities. Cost-sharing by the companies for these projects is required. The session will provide an overview of the funded projects.

Scott Childers, Vice President, Stryten Energy

The US market for stationary energy storage is now growing exponentially, with weekly announcements of project originations, construction, and commissioning of systems which are each in the hundreds of Megawatts and Megawatt-hours.  (And in some cases, Gigawatt-hours.)  Almost all of the deployed systems are lithium-ion with short discharge durations of one to four hours, utilizing active materials sourced outside the US and manufactured by non-US companies.  Meanwhile, demand for energy storage systems that provide a medium discharge duration of four to ten hours is materializing in several areas in the US, including those with winter peaking.  It is this market segment for which flow batteries are particularly fit for purpose.  There are growing US companies and companies from friendly countries now winning substantial flow battery projects and in the early stages of establishing US flow battery manufacturing.  Also, market interest is developing in energy storage systems that provide long discharge durations of ten to one hundred hours.  The technologies serving this market segment best may turn out to be mechanical and thermal, with a diversity of US and other companies endeavoring to mature their systems into commercial products.

Dr. Pietro Lopes, Electrochemist Scientist, Argonne National Laboratory

Lead batteries have the economical potential to serve as a key energy storage technology for a sustainable energy future powered by renewable energy. Despite lead abundance, low commodity level cost and robust industrial base with 99% recyclability rates for current lead battery technologies, improvements in material utilization (discharge capacity), rechargeability and cycle life are paramount to truly enable lead battery use in grid energy storage, particularly for long-duration energy storage (LDES). While continuous progress in battery performance has been achieved over the past few decades, a step change in performance and durability is required, which drives us to re-examine the electrochemical and chemical processes of both negative and positive electrodes at the fundamental level. In this talk, we will focus on new insights about the discharge and recharge process in lead batteries gained from studying well-defined lead, lead dioxide and lead sulfate-sulfuric acid interfaces. Through an electrolyte-mediated dissolution-precipitation mechanism we discuss how the maximum discharge capacity attained at either negative or positive electrodes is defined by the surface passivation process from the nucleation and growth of lead sulfate layers over the active materials surface. In turn, we were able to derive from first principles the well-known Peukert relationship between discharge capacity and discharge rates. By exploring the influence of temperature, acid concentration and the presence of lignosulfonate molecules we were able to shed new light on how thermodynamic, kinetic, and mass transport effects regulate the lead sulfate layer thickness and consequently the maximum discharge capacity. By exploring the role of the lead sulfate layer thickness as well as particle size from well-defined chemically synthesized PbSO₄ we were able to reveal how the kinetics of the chemical dissolution step is the rate-determining step governing the recharge rates. We will then conclude by demonstrating how the understanding of the discharge limits of lead batteries creates new opportunities in the design of advanced expander molecules that can enhance both the charge and discharge properties of negative lead battery electrodes.

Linda Gaines, Transportation Systems Analyst, Argonne National Laboratory

Rapid growth of lithium-ion battery use is projected to continue in the transportation and stationary storage markets, leading to concomitant growth in demand for the constituent materials. But experts foresee imminent shortages in key materials, such as lithium, nickel, and cobalt. How can these batteries be recycled and to what extent can recycling alleviate the looming supply constraints? What other materials can be used if key material supplies prove insufficient or too expensive? How can we reap the greatest benefit from a limited supply of material? Is there an enhanced role possible for lead? How can technological options enable the US to supply continued mobility for both people and the goods they require?  This presentation will address these important questions.

Anthony K. Burrell, Head of Energy Storage, National Renewable Energy Laboratory

The Behind-the-Meter Storage (BTMS) initiative focuses on novel critical-material-free storage technologies to facilitate the integration of electric vehicle (EV) charging, solar power generation technologies, and energy-efficient buildings while minimizing both costs and grid impacts. For extreme fast charging at levels of 800 kW or higher, novel approaches are required to avoid significant negative cost and resiliency impacts to the grid and site owner. BTMS research is targeted at developing innovative energy-storage technology specifically optimized for stationary applications below 10 MWh that will minimize the need for significant grid upgrades. To be successful, new and innovative integration treatments must be developed for seamless interaction between stationary storage, PV generation, building systems, and the electric grid. This presentation will give an overview of the project and will mainly focus on the electrochemical energy storage aspects.

Shawn Peng, Senior Director, C&D Technologies and Trojan Battery Company

Kimber Staub, Director, Trojan Battery Company

This presentation will explore the significance of lead batteries in small and medium-sized Long Duration Energy Storage systems designed for Behind-the-Meter (BTM) applications. These applications are integral components of distributed energy resources within the context of Virtual Power Plants (VPPs), which are poised to play a crucial role in the near-future energy storage landscape. The presentation will delve into evolving trends in the US electricity demand, the Department of Energy (DOE) strategies for VPPs, and the essential Energy Storage System (ESS) services tailored to market segments within BTM applications.

Moreover, this presentation will shed light on the pivotal role that lead batteries play in ESS, conducting a comprehensive analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of lead battery technology when compared to lithium-ion technology. It will also address the critical question of which duration segments are most suited for lead batteries, the appropriate system sizing considerations for optimal performance, and the areas for continuous improvements.

Nate Kirchhofer, Cofounder and CEO, BioZen Batteries, Inc.

David Ridley, Consultant, CleanTech Strategies

Eric Hostetler, Senior Research Engineer, ENTEK

Flow batteries differ from “solid” batteries such as lead-acid and lithium-ion, in that energy is stored not in components of the electrochemical conversion device itself, but rather in tanks containing liquid electrolytes which are pumped between the tanks and the conversion device. Thus, the major components of flow batteries are electro-chemical conversion devices or “stacks” (including membranes, electrodes, bipolar plates, and carbon materials); electrolytes (including a range of active species including metals and carbon-based); tanks, pumps, and other mechanical balance of plant; power electronics; inverter, and enclosure. Each of these major components of a flow battery must be properly designed, and then skillfully integrated into a cost-effective and reliable system. All of this is not easily done.