DC Power Hour

The Battery Blarney duo of George and Allen welcome Fran Losey, a critical power and power quality professional who has a disciplined military background. His specialties include critical power systems, power distribution, power quality, battery systems, battery monitoring, and advanced analysis of battery systems for risk reduction and lifecycle management.

To many, the battery is a mystery. What are they? What do they do? How do they work? In this episode, we'll demystify batteries and take a look at how to monitor them in order to get the most out of your system. By understanding battery behaviors and taking proactive steps to managing them, you can mitigate problems before they arise and maximize uptime. We'll also take a look at some data analysis techniques that can help you understand your battery's health.

Highlight:

01:30 – One of the craziest things about life is there's absolutely nothing that we do or are involved in that there`s not at some point involved a battery to try and keep it operational.

09:18 – Today it is very easy to collect that data, modern electronics are wonderful. You can measure almost anything you want to, and you can collect data. The big problem is how do you make sure that data you`re collecting are accurate?

17:40 – The measurement techniques, because they`re all not the same and with that you have to have a fairly decent understanding of what you are looking at and what the risks are.

28:46 – Everything is a compromise. What you have to do is to say which of the compromises you`re willing to accept and what you`re going to do about it.

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This episode focuses on the reality vs. myths of moving from fossil fuels toward alternative, renewable energy sources. George and Allen discuss the true effect this will have on society, the environment, and the power industry. While electrification in theory will greatly reduce carbon emissions and result in a more sustainable environment and future, in reality, it poses a number of concerns about cost, efficiency, and reliable power. Striking the right balance through this transition is a must as we navigate the myriad of potential issues to consider.

Highlights

19:16 Maybe we can start transitioning over to the alternatives to see what’s realistic and what’s not, there.

22:19 Converting a traditional coal burning plant to a clean coal burning plant is significant. 

29:16 People often forget that the pollution and the impact of coal, natural gas, burning plants 

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The Battery Blarney duo of George and Allen welcome Ed Rogers, National Service Support Manager at EnerSys, to talk about battery charging. The topic of proper battery charging is one of Allen’s passions and they discuss what happens when you undercharge and overcharge a battery. 

All batteries are not equal and the discussion covers temperature compensation and the  difficulty of determining the state of charge of a battery. They talk about freshening the charge per the manufacturer’s guidelines, lack of education on why it’s necessary to follow those guidelines, and the importance of optimizing battery life.

Highlights:

01:25 One thing I found in common with warranty claims, in over 50% of them, the paperwork that accompanied them showed the batteries were not being properly charged.

05:34 Corporate training teaches people how to do something, but it doesn’t teach them why they’re doing it. Basically education comes in two forms: you’ve got to educate the people, and then you can tell them how to do something. I think that’s one of the biggest problems we have at the present moment that people have been asked to do things and they don’t understand why they’re doing them. 

15:30 Overcharging has a much more devastating effect. When you overcharge a battery, you’re shoving in more current than the battery can handle. Current causes heat.

23:49 The battery itself, as it’s manufactured and leaves the factory, it’s only ever going to be in two states after that. It’s always going to be in discharge or it’s always going to be in charge.

52:18 We’ve known the use of zinc and manganese and nickel. They’ve been available almost since the start of battery technology, but they had chemical things that made them difficult to use. Some of that’s been overcome now.

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In this episode, we dig in about the importance of battery room safety. In the Battery Blarney segment, George and Allen talk about issues that can occur when safety precautions are overlooked, and why they are overlooked. Then, they are joined by Ed Rafter, an experienced engineer who has spent his impressive career successfully working across a number of segments in the industry. Ed shares his expertise and recommendations based on what he's seen over the past few decades.

Highlights

02:45 - The whole point is that the battery itself is physically dangerous and the things that I worry about are electric shock and chemical risks and that is something that people don’t understand.

11:26 - One of the things that we should do once we are in the battery room is to smell, If you smell anything unusual, get the hell out of there.

19:20 - A 2-volt cell can be dangerous if you short it out and you happen to be in the wrong place when you're doing it. You can be burned very badly. 

29:29 - Without input isolation transformers, we had a risk that we essentially could have a ground fall path that travels to the input transformer.

33:49 – One of the things we recommended over the years is to put the UPS on racks.

44:39 – I`ve seen it, I`ve felt it. I`ve seen in my personal experience, the aftermath of mishandling a battery. It's the customer who feels that pain some time later on.

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In today’s episode, we spread deep knowledge in the battery industry and look at how ohmic measurement and ohmic values play a crucial role in battery testing. The Battery Blarney Duo, George and Allen, discuss data trending, the most significant things to look at when monitoring a battery, the value of low capacity cells, and acceptance of ohmic value. In the second segment, they are joined by industry expert and friend, Peter DeMar of Battery Research and Testing for almost 40 years.  Peter shared his background and they discuss artificial intelligence, indication of battery health, place for ohmic testing for batteries with advanced chemistry, ohmic testers and UPS.

Highlights:

16:14 You’ve got to look at everything. This is probably my biggest concern when we talk about ohmic measurement is this almost pathological belief that that is the only value that matters. We have to go back to the original battery technicians, think about what they did. They’re looking at everything, they are looking at temperature, they are looking at the voltage.

21:37 You need some very accurate instrument tape devices in order to measure those voltages and also the problem of noise at the same time because batteries are not as quiet as people think they are.

22:47 Why do we have to have this value, why must we have limits? Eventually I do believe we will see artificial intelligence get involved because AI doesn’t need limits, it recognizes those changes and variations.

41:37 In improvements or inclusions or whatever the right word is. With artificial intelligence and machines and programs in understanding what they’re looking at we’re going to make improvements. The information or analysis coming out of them might be more beneficial.

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The world is changing - is our electrical grid prepared to handle it? In today's episode of DC Power Hour, George, Allen and the guys acknowledge the anniversary of the Texas power outage last February by discussing how extreme weather and the stress on the power grid affects everyone. From extreme weather events to the lack of funding and personnel for utilities, the group discusses the complexity of issues facing the power grid infrastructure now and in the future. They explore what's working and what's not in some European countries and if it could be applicable in the US, as well as other potential ways to start attacking this immense problem.

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 you're 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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In today's episode, we talk about UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) applications and improvements that can be made based on seasoned expertise from George and Allen. The Battery Blarney duo talks about how UPS was initially used and the pitfalls of using it over the years. They talk about the problems with the batteries, the kind of lead used, their experience with it, maintenance and so much more. 

In the second segment, they are joined by industry expert and friend Al Warner, who has been involved in the UPS industry for 37 years. They talk about the several types of UPSs and which is the most reliable. They debate if UPSs are battery-friendly and what their problems are. 

Highlights

12:41 In the last 10-15 years, there has been a major push to actually raise the operating temperature of the data room because they say the computers can operate at a much higher temp and that will reduce the cooling. 

13:45  When they introduced lead acid batteries, so-called sealed maintenance-free batteries, which we know are either sealed or maintenance-free.

17:24 In my opinion, all stationary batteries should use virgin lead. 

19:39 The big problem we have is that theoretically if you remove the charge, you then will not be causing the rate of corrosion. The only trouble is depending on how long you remove the charge from the battery, you will get into self-discharge and that's sufficient to do damage to the battery overtime. 

22:08 I'd like to move on to the fact that maintenance nightmares are another aspect of UPS battery designs.

39:51 I think flow charging is a disgrace to the UPS industry because it promotes positive grid corrosion.

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David and Andrew welcome industry experts George and Allen to set the record straight on lead acid batteries. They talk about the origin and history of batteries, including French physicist Gaston Plante and his invention of the rechargeable battery.

George and Allen discuss battery life span and challenges with different battery types over the years as well as the importance of the maintenance of the battery and understanding why batteries fail. They emphasize that maintenance and treating the battery properly is the key to battery reliability.

Highlights:

08:14 Lead is a very soft material and in the initial lead acid batteries they used pure lead plates, but these proved to be somewhat cumbersome and didn’t like to be moved. 

10:10 This led to the fact that there was a little bit of a divide between North America and the rest of the world with respect to technologies to use. 

12:19 They still had the problem with the positive plate growth. Once again, these batteries had to be very carefully charged because if they were overcharged, it gassed.

18:39 With valve regulated lead acid batteries, adhering to the same standard for length of service, what we found out very quickly was that the 10-year life battery, which was probably the one that was launched first, wasn't performing. 

25:30 That’s probably the biggest challenge we have is getting people to understand the environmental conditions under which these batteries are being operated is key to their life. 

33:14 People have to make sure that the battery is charged at the charge voltage recommended by the manufacturer, not by the ups company, not by the charger company, otherwise you’re going to have problems, big problems. 

42:09 There is no single measurement that you take that tells you the status of the battery. It’s a combination of all the measurements, and their interaction and how they are behaving at the time.

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In this episode of the DC Power Hour Podcast, we learn 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 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

2:49 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. 

5:13 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.

8:14 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.

1:02:55 One thing that could really unlock the potential across the country is an increase in transmission deployment.

1:05:27 Transmission has been, and will continue to be a huge obstacle in renewable energy deployment going forward.

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In this episode of DC Power Hour, we have a panel of round table experts to talk about the most recent Battcon event. Allan Byrne, George Pedersen and Erik Knudston discuss their experience and process the whole event. 

The whole team dive deep into the conversation and share their thoughts and opinions on the event. The Battcon Stationary Battery Conference and Trade Show covers the latest industry trends and how to apply the best practices to manufacturing, safety, selection, installation and use of stationary batteries. 

Episode Highlights:

5:30 Battcon is an international conference with people coming from all over the world to the conference which is a very good platform. 

8:45 Unlike any other conference I’ve spoken at, they are far more thorough and stricter on the speakers. 

11:30 One of the major things I’ve noticed throughout the entirety of the show is how engaged the people were that were actually there. 

17:00 I actually do believe that we do have some disruptive technologies that are coming along. The most interesting fact about it is though, that they're not actually new technologies. They're very old technologies. They just were learning how to make the chemistry work.

19:00 There are a lot of experts there and I really am appreciative that a lot of it was non-commercialized, not pitched towards a specific product.

31:32 One of the things about the background as well, is that it's one of the few conferences where the list of attendees is not made public, and attendees love that because it means that you don't have every salesman in the universe sending them information after the conference. 

39:36 There’s more than the interactive consideration as well, we do want to be an interactive conference. 

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