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“SCM Series supercapacitor modules are rated for operating temperatures from -40°C to +65°C and lifetimes that extend to millions of cycles,” according to the company. “They are also lead-free compatible, RoHS compliant, and compliant with the UL 810A standard for electrochemical capacitors.”
Initially there are five versions:
- 16V 58F SCMA63K586SPPB2 – 5mA max leakage, 15mΩ ESR, 226.2 x 48.6mm plastic case, terminal screws.
- 160V 5.8F SCMA63S586SPPB2 – 25mA max leakage, 150mΩ ESR, 364.5 x 234mm plastic case, terminal screws
- 16V 500F SCMZ1EK507STAB2 6mA max leakage, 2.5mΩ ESR, 418 x 68mm aluminium case, four-pin connector
- 48V 165F SCMZ1EP1F6STAB2, 6mA max leakage, 5.22mΩ ESR, 418 x 194mm aluminium case, four-pin connector
- 48V 83F SCMZ85P836STAB2, 3mA max leakage , 9mΩ ESR, 418 x 194mm aluminium case, four-pin connector
All capacitances are +30%, -10%.
Picking the 16V 58F SCMA63K586SPPB2 as an example, maximum operating current is 21.1A at 15°C, although peak up to 249A can be handled. Capacity is 2.07Wh and it weighs 680g.
Lifetime if cycled from rated voltage to half voltage and back is 500,000 cycles at +25°C – to a 30% or less capacitance loss.
IEC 60068-2-27, 29 / IEC 60068-2-6 vibration resistance is claimed to the same capacitance change.
Active cell balancing is supported, said the company.
Applications are foreseen with batteries or alone in uninterruptable power supplies, micro-grid storage, wind turbine pitch control, energy harvesting and regenerative energy capture.
Find the 16V 58F SCMA63K586SPPB2 data sheet here
The same week, Rutronik announced supercapacitor banks optimised for high power delivery from Eaton.
I think a few hybrid cars are doing this. The Toyota FCHV hydrogen hybrid uses them and the Lambo Sián does too. Not sure if any EVs are being made with all supercapacitors but I think we may see a combo system soon.
Thanks Benjamin
I stand corrected, and will take a look at these vehicles.
Found it – Lamborghini Sian indeed – claiming that it is the first – and it does not appear to have a traction battery, just supercapacitors for brief 25kW boost, according to WhichCar here: https://www.whichcar.com.au/advice/lamborghini-sian-supercapacitor-explained
Thanks Bejamin
BTW, Struggling to find a Toyota FCHV supercapacitor reference – any ideas?
The article I saw it in originally:
https://www.carmagazine.co.uk/car-news/tech/what-is-supercapacitor-battery-ev-and-hybrid/
I think this paper mentions it too but I can’t access it:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0313592618301371
Thanks Benjamin.
That made me try a little harder, and this paper (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352152X2031940X, available in full) has this list of fuel cell + supercapacitor cars:
Honda FCX, Honda FCX Clarity, Honda Clarity Fuel Cell, Toyota FCHV-adv, Toyota Mirai and Hyundai NEXO.
So maybe it is fair to say that, so far, no mainstream electric cars have supercapacitors?
The Hong Kong Metro and some other Chinese lines use supercapacitors to store all the braking energy going into a station, then accelerating away again.
Thanks Mike
It is nice to hear that they are being designed in.
I made a bike light years ago with one – it is still working 🙂
I used them to shut down a Pi CM4 without corrupting memory. With a MT3608 boost convertor you can just drag enough energy out of a pair of them.
Morning Mike
MT3608, I have not seen that before – 2A boosting from such a little chip.
Mine used one of those little Zetex (now Diodes) boost converters (maybe a ZXSC310) which drained the capacitor right down to 800mV – what a neat chip, if unregulated.
Another application to add to the mental list – must be a huge bank to absorb all those Joules
…pauses to search….
17.9kWh according to this paper (https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/55049866.pdf), which glanced through and (I might have misunderstood) seems to equate to 29tonnes of capacitors
I believe that integrating supercapacitors in conjuction with regenerative braking coupled to an EV motor and with electronic controls with an EV battery system can relieve the high current drain from an EV battery during initial startup until operati g speed is achieved.
Welcome JW Sherwin
The supercapacitor companies propose this idea quite a lot, but I am not aware of anywhere it has been used – do get in touch if you have an example – as batteries seemed to improve their internal resistance just quickly enough to always push supercapacitors out of EV designs.
Places where very long term reliability is needed is where supercapacitors win over batteries – like in the rotating hubs of wind turbines, where I am told they store energy for emergency blade ‘feathering’ if the main power system fails.
Just came onto the article by chance : supe iinteresting.
Are such capacitors used primarily to manage surges in power grids? Saw elsewhere an alternative where energy is stored by converting it to motion : in rotating magnets.
Good morning R Moller
I might be wrong, but I think they are a bit expensive for grid surges.
For brief surges, grids already have a giant spinning magnetically-coupled surge leveller in the total momentum of all of the generators that are connected at any one time – exactly as you describe.
Massive resistors sometimes installed to dump fast local surges as heat – I used to work around the corner from one – lots of vertical parallel metal plates.
Though I am adamantly opposed to electric vehicles I would be tempted by a mild hybrid that had super capacitor storage instead of a battery. Suzuki makes a well designed mild hybrid engine that would be a good candidate for a super capacitor.
Interesting challenge Fast Eddie
Seems like supercapacitors have never quite made it into vehicles (correct me if I am wrong) because their ability to deliver and absorb huge current pulses batteries has been offset by improvements in the way batteries can deliver and absorb current.
A big box of supercaps might give a little Suzuki great acceleration if the motor could handle it 🙂
If the motor can handle it. That’s why auto start at stop lights is a bad idea. Better to idle than replace the starter every few years. Like I say, planned obsolescence or planned failure is fraud.