CBI Battery Pack Powers award winning UJ Solar Car
Article Category:
06/11/2014
The University of Johannesburg’s (UJ) Solar Team was awarded the Technology and Innovation Award at the end of the 2014 Sasol Solar Challenge in Cape Town on Saturday, 4 October. The Sasol Solar Challenge is an international event with solar cars participating from South Africa, Cypress, Holland, India, Iran and Turkey.
The Challenge commenced on Saturday, 27 September from CSIR, Pretoria at 08:00 and ended in Cape Town on Saturday, 04 October. The vehicle, Ilanga II (Zulu word for SUN), received special recognition for its innovative use of advanced technology. Astonishingly, the battery pack, supplied by CBI-electric consisted of over 400 individual Lithium-Ion cells weighing less than 20% of the total weight of the car. The vehicle used Gallium Arsenide solar panels imported from Germany, which UJ said let it build the smallest and lightest (185 kg) vehicle to participate in the challenge – a crucial advantage.
According to UJ this was the first time that a 3m2 GaAs solar array had been used in a solar challenge race as opposed to the 6m2 Silicon arrays that they were competing against. Lightweight materials such as carbon fibre, Kevlar, and Airex foam core were used for the body and suspension of the vehicle. Ilanga II also featured an axial flux brushless DC hub motor which UJ explains is designed for solar racing, and was chosen for its efficiency as well as a high peak power output.
Panasonic Lithium Ion Batteries selected
CBI was approached by UJ regarding the Panasonic lithium ion batteries which many of the top solar racing car teams around the world use. “These batteries, distributed by CBI, are recognised as top performing cells” John Ballard, Sales and Product Manager Industrial Products for the CBI DC-energy division, stated. Panasonic is one of the largest lithium ion battery manufacturers in the world and has an extensive range of models for various applications including hybrid electrical vehicles, large scale energy storage systems, cell phone and laptop power supplies, among other high end portable electrical and electronic devices.
The batteries utilised in the UJ Solar car project are high capacity 18650 cylindrical cells with voltages of 3.6 V with a nominal capacity of 2950 mAh per cell. Their features include high energy density providing greater power in a reduced size with high cycle capabilities for a longer life. “These batteries have built-in safety features which are very important in lithium ion cells and they offer lower self-discharge for longer storage periods,” Ballard continues. UJ installed the single battery cells by connecting them in series and parallel to make up a battery pack supplying over 5 000 W of power.
“It was an interesting project to be involved in and it was gratifying that the UJ Solar car team put their faith in the Panasonic battery product for such an important part of the design – the power supply!” The UJ Solar car was branded with CBI’s logo to promote CBI’s involvement in the project.
Advanced engineering technology
The car’s steering wheel was 3D printed and included a custom electronics board connected to an LCD display and several buttons. This included a booster button, for a quick boost of acceleration when needed. The vehicle also contained a full telemetry system which let the team member responsible for the race strategy and optimisation of the vehicle monitor the power output of the solar panels and the available power in the battery pack remotely.
The solar car project is the flagship project of the UJ Energy Movement, a programme promoting research, education and industry participation on alternative energy issues at UJ in collaboration with Resolution Circle. Resolution Circle is a UJ owned research, development and training initiative. This was the second time the UJ Solar team was recognised for its innovation, having won the innovation award in the 2012 Sasol Solar Challenge. UJ’s solar team is now moving forward to represent South Africa in the World Solar Challenge in Australia in 2015.
CBI-electric: dc-energy is a sub division of the CBI-electric: low voltage group of companies, holding the sole distributor rights for Panasonic energy products into Southern Africa, and imports and distributes a range of Panasonic branded DC Energy products. The Panasonic brand is recognised globally as a premium product with a reputation for quality, value for money, reliability and technological development.
