Is LiFePO 4 Technology Ready for Internet of Things?

Abstract

While self-sufficient sensors and actors are about to pave the way for a new computing class, associate Internet of Things applications will highly depend on efficient and reliable storage of electrical energy. Likewise the same is true for electrical based transport systems requiring light weights and high capacities. Recently, novel LiFePO4 based storage cell types with standardized form-factors have become available. These cells tend to be promising in terms of high energy densities, low self-discharge rates and long cycle lives. Anyhow, the aging behavior, maturity, statistical spread and reliability of these new cells have not been analyzed and modeled thoroughly. Therefore, we analyze and compare in this paper the self-discharge behavior, lifetime and reliability of different lithium-based battery cells using a dedicated test bench. We use temperature, voltage, current, and power cycling as acceleration and stress parameters.