DC Power Hour

The Battery Blarney Duo continue their discussion on the challenges and opportunities facing the DC power industry. They discuss the role of standards in promoting innovation and interoperability, the need for improved energy storage technologies, and the potential for micro-grids to provide resiliency in the face of extreme weather events. They also talk about the changing landscape of the utility industry, as more and more customers are seeking alternatives to traditional grid-provided power. The panelists agree that the future of the DC power industry is full of promise, but caution that there are still many challenges to be addressed. They urge companies and individuals to continue to push for progress in order to ensure that the industry can meet the needs of a rapidly changing world.

Episode Highlight:

07:51 - What I think people forget sometimes is the use of the word "standards". Standards really should be mandated by law, like the national electricity code.

19:39 - That`s probably one of the biggest challenges we have, from the maintenance point of view, because we simply like the technicians or all of those recommended practices on how things should be done.

27:17 - For me, if I was a manager of a facility, I would require that our technicians  adhere to the standards.

37:44 - Maybe we have a high level of engineering expertise but it doesn`t apply in a different industry and each industry is different.

49:25 - PRC 005 and TPO 001-5 are all part of the requirement, most of these managers  or in the managerial level dont understand the basis of it.

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Batteries are a critical part of the telecom infrastructure and can be found in many different types of telecom equipment. They provide backup power and support to essential systems during an outage or emergency situation. Most substations have some kind of telecom element to them. This could be as simple as a few batteries, or it could be a much more complex system. In either case, a DC battery is typically used. However, batteries alone are not enough to power a substation. They must be connected to the utility's power grid in order to function properly. Without this connection, the substation would not be able to provide the necessary power to the community it serves. 

Episode Highlights

06:34 - The challenge has become another direction because it’s a lot more difficult to innovate because you're stuck to certain things that you have to do.  

09:42 - We already got computerization within the main switching centers. With a lot of fancy details and fancy fonts, one of the problems was that they needed to be able to operate the monitor and the keyboard in order to access the switch.  

14:43 - Customers said, “Well, we don’t want these nasty batteries with electrolytes rushing around inside, we want something that is more user-friendly, we want something that’s smaller, something that’s lighter, something that’s cheaper, something that doesn’t require maintenance,” and low and behold, the industry came up with one of the greatest marketing ploys I thought ever happened and it’s a complete oxymoron. They come up with selling free batteries.  

29:14 - There’s a telecom element within every substation. Some more complex than others, sometimes they are stand alone. It all depends on the utility structure.

34:08 - There’s almost a disconnect within certain utilities as an entity within their own substation sometimes and I’m sure some people are upset about being told that. 

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In this episode, the Battery Blarney hold a Q&A with Ron Dickinson from Western Farmers Electric Co-op in Oklahoma. They discuss things like the fact that batteries are susceptible to corrosion, which can lead to a thermal runaway event. And when dealing with battery corrosion, it's important to know the signs. One of the most common causes of battery corrosion is from electrolyte or electrolyte vapors emitting from the top of the battery. This can often be caused by overcharging, and can lead to a condition known as thermal runaway. It’s important to keep an eye on your batteries. Make sure that they are properly maintained and that you know what you can do to protect your battery from harm.

Episode Highlights:

04:05 The common cause I found recently is that, because the seal is damaged in some way or another. You know, electrolyte rips off those terminals and you’ll see, obviously, a corrosion. 

08:47 When you clean a post, you should only use a soft kitchen pads, or whatever you call them.

12:05 You can try another equalizer and try to equalize charge but it may not solve the problem but it’s good to have at least a very much internal analysis, so I’m always looking for more than one thing to look at to confirm why I think it could be. 

21:45 The basis of thermal runaway is that the battery, it gets hot and it’s unable to dissipate that heat. 

37:55 One way that can affect the battery is if it’s operated in a very humid condition.

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In this episode the Battery Blarney Duo, George and Allen discuss the challenges of battery warranty and why battery maintenance is important. Many battery problems can be attributed to a lack of maintenance. Batteries are usually warranted for only a year or two, and many battery manufacturers consider battery failures due to sulfation (a lead acid battery enemy) to be the user's fault. Sulfation occurs when a battery is left in a discharged state for too long.

Our society has become accustomed to seeing things work without maintenance until they no longer work, and batteries are no exception. Disposable batteries have spoiled us rotten. With battery ignition, there's very little battery maintenance required other than checking the electrolyte level and keeping it topped off. When was the last time you replaced the battery in your smoke alarm or flashlight? All batteries will eventually die, but with proper care and maintenance, their lives can be prolonged.

Episode Highlight

02:26 - You have to select the right battery for the application, and that's one of my biggest concerns is, are people getting the right advice?

08:07  - A lot of the batteries were not being placed and service properly, there were others sitting on the shelf too long, a lot of people don't realize that a typical battery only has a shelf life of 3-6 months.

19:28 - It is also important that you charge the battery according to the manufacturing instructions, because the battery may require different charging voltages.

30:43 - Anything that you do to that battery or anything that happens to that battery during its life, should be recorded and all of the information about it should be recorded.

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In this special episode, we went live! The Battery Blarney duo welcomed questions from the audience about ohmic testing on a battery, how the rules apply to a NiCad battery, and many more. We were excited to answer these questions and give our audience a behind-the-scenes look at what goes into testing batteries. Our hope is that by answering these questions, we can help people better understand batteries and how they work. Thanks for tuning in!

Episode Highlights:

[04:27] - So, if you have to do Ohmic testing on a battery, and you see you need to add some liquid, are you supposed to wait a certain amount of time before you can actually test it properly? What’s the recommended timeframe?

[09:32] - How do the rules apply to a NiCad battery?

[25:35] - Allen, have you come across a lot of stratification in flooded cells, and how would you go about testing for it, or looking for it? This is for you because I know what George thinks about it.

[28:36] - If the whole battery’s sitting there static for a long time, most of the cells will stratify to a certain extent, and the voltage is going to be the same for all of them because they’re all stratified.

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The Battery Blarney duo welcomes Al Warner to talk about the unreliability of the electric grid.

The electric grid is one of the most important infrastructure elements in the United States. It's a system of interconnected power plants and transmission lines that delivers electricity to homes and businesses. The grid is also one of the most complex systems in the world, and it's susceptible to a variety of risks. Grid operators must constantly balance supply and demand to maintain a consistent flow of electricity, and they must also contend with severe weather, cyber attacks, and other threats. As a result, the grid is not always reliable. Outages can occur for a variety of reasons, and they can have major consequences. That's why it's important for grid operators to continuously monitor conditions and take steps to mitigate risks. By doing so, they can help ensure that the electric grid remains reliable for the millions of Americans who rely on it every day.

Highlights:

02:54 - The electric grid today is like playing grid Jenga. If you pull out specific pieces of the grid it will all fall down.

12:21 - If I want a fast recharge I`ve got to have a 250kw charger for one vehicle. This is the problem for the electrical grid, it cannot support this kind of spontaneous step load.

23:29 - This country really needs a brand new backbone. If these people are serious about the future being electrical we need a whole new backbone.

39:41 - The rail system is probably the most economical way to transport goods but the trucking industry took over and the prices were so low but now with the price of fuel, train transporting of goods is becoming more competitive I think.

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The Battery Blarney duo of George and Allen welcome Joey Davis and Ed Rafter to talk about applying Stationary Battery Training in the Field and Battery Monitoring. Battery training is important for a number of reasons. 

First, it helps to ensure that employees are properly trained in the use of batteries. Second, it helps to improve the safety of employees by teaching them how to properly handle and use batteries. Third, it helps to improve the efficiency of battery usage by teaching employees how to best maintain and operate batteries. Finally, it helps to improve the overall quality of the battery monitoring industry by teaching employees how to better identify and resolve issues that may arise with batteries. By providing employees with proper training, companies can help to improve the quality of their products and services and ensure that their customers are satisfied with the results.

Highlights:

02:08 - They badly need training in order to bring people up to speed. This is probably the key to everything that we do.

05:51 - We have some guides coming out which I think will be great tutorials towards helping people and those folks responsible for batteries.

18:35 - One of the things that I had found, especially when I go out into the field and do training, not only are you there as a teacher but you end up also being a consultant.

20:13 - It takes time to see things happen and learn things and all that you can't just walk in and say hey, I go to a training class so I know it all now.

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This June, as we look back on our first 20 episodes, we wanted to revisit two of our favorite topics so far - "Renewables and Alternative Energy Sources" and "Extreme Weather and Other Pitfalls of the Current Power Grid."

Please enjoy, and we'll be back with all new episodes in July.

In today's episode of DC Power Hour, it is the 1st year anniversary of the Texas power outage. This episode will focus on how extreme weather and the stress on the power grid affects everyone. They kick off the episode with a discussion on climate change and the lack of national support for power plants. They also discuss the advantages and disadvantages of renewable energy. They explore the best practices of European countries and how they can help if applied in the US. This is an episode rich with great thoughts between experts and some things to consider on energy moving forward.

*The views expressed in this podcast represent the individuals who share them and are not necessarily those of Eagle Eye Power Solutions, LLC.*

Highlights:

06:07 We've got what we've got coming. This really is a perfect storm when you think about it. We’ve got an aging infrastructure, really aging infrastructure, we've got aging power plants, money hasn't been spent, we have changing weather patterns, we also have a drive to rely more and more on renewable energy. 

20:05 The first major thing we get changed is that people need to start looking at how the return of investment will be the improvement in reliability at less cost and loss of service. 

26:57 One of the things in the United States that is different from Europe is their electrical reliability is a lot more superior, not because they do things better, not because they have better people, but because a lot of their utilities are underground.

35:55 I've been a proponent of micro nuclear plants for quite a while. You move the power source closer to the end user. 

37:50  One thing I've always been curious about, maybe it's just me but, why isn't there more push for hydro? 

42:43 All batteries using anodes and cathodes are effectively a metal of some kind because that's the way the atomic system works; the only way you get free electrons is to have a conductor and they're all metals. In order to build a lot of this stuff your gonna be doing a lot of mining, and isn't that pollution?

47:42  When it comes to transmission and getting power to the coast and you’re talking about these micro grids. I really think that it's a potential path because some of the biggest things we see are like the “not in my backyard” movement .

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This June, as we look back on our first 20 episodes, we wanted to revisit two of our favorite topics so far - "Renewables and Alternative Energy Sources" and "Extreme Weather and Other Pitfalls of the Current Power Grid."

Please enjoy, and we'll be back with all new episodes in July.

In this first episode, we learned about renewables and alternative energy sources. In the Battery Blarney segment, industry experts George Pedersen and Allan Byrne dive into talking about different topics from solar farms, a combination of other sources, alternatives and much more. 

In the second segment, we are joined by Jack Andreasen, who is the Manager of Industrial Decarbonization Policy at Breakthrough

Energy. He touches on topics regarding building decarbonization, increase in transmission deployment, transmission lines and more. 

Episode Highlights

02:49 If you look at some reports, renewables are going to take over a whole generation of the power grid, which is not possible at the moment. 

05:13 I think the thing that most people don't understand is that when you generate electricity, when you cause that electro reaction, the way you start moving atoms around charging atoms, so you get charged ions to create your power, you can’t get rid of it, it's got to be used.

08:14 The environmentalist wants all this solar power and wind power. What's that actually doing to the environment?

13:57 In most places in the world, if you have a combination of both wind and solar, you get a much more consistent power source. You combine the two together.

20:23 I think it's going to be a mixture of everything, we're going to have renewable energy, whether we like it or not.

23:06 Education is something as you're realizing, something very dear to my heart at the present moment, but it’s hard work because people come in with preconceived ideas now and somehow, for some reason, scientific facts are no longer the driving force behind anything.

35:18 We don't have to build huge networks or distribution to try and support it because one of the things that people should realize is that the network power in those transmission lines that we crisscross the countryside, are also very vulnerable to attack. 

39:58 The problem is that we live in a world today where we want a simple answer that will cover everything and that's not the way the world is, it's never been the way the world is.

47:23 One of the advantages of gases is that it’s easier to transport than anything else.

58:34 We work with Congress, we work with the private sector, we work with other NGOs and think tanks to develop strategies and policy recommendations around ways we think we could decarbonize those various industries.

01:02:55 One thing that could really unlock the potential across the country is an increase in transmission deployment.

01:05:27 Transmission has been, and will continue to be a huge obstacle in renewable energy deployment going forward.

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Stand-by power installations are a crucial part of any business or facility. They provide emergency power during outages, ensuring that critical systems keep running. However, many businesses and facilities are finding that the quality of their stand-by power installations is declining. What's causing this decline, and what can be done to improve the situation?

The Battery Blarney duo of George and Allen welcome Peter DeMar, the person that led the team that developed the VRLA battery capacity recovery process named the IOVR or IOVR+ process. These processes were created to help users that were experiencing early capacity or capability losses with their VRLA batteries. It has been proven that by utilizing these processes that any structurally sound battery that has suffered from premature capacity failure can be improved, and in most cases restored to a fully functional battery system. Of course, the process must be performed properly and completely to obtain the maximum benefit available.

Highlight:

03:08 – A lot of it is due to the fact of this continual pressure to get the job done. We've given you two days to do this but nobody went to look at the site to discover what has to be done. That's probably the biggest problem we have.

11:44 – A lot of the installation of DC systems is now being left to electrical contractors and they have absolutely no experience to actually install a wire in a DC system.

20:02 – It`s critically important to label the hands of the cable, so that we can find which is what.

45:03 – I don’t see it being followed throughout the industry so maybe that is one of the things that we need to look out for, training of the various technicians at various skill levels.

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