Small factory footprint
.jpeg)
Ultracapacitors, also known as Supercapacitors, or Electric Double Layer Capacitors (EDLC’s) store energy electrostatically as opposed to batteries which store energy electrochemically. Since ultracapacitors do not rely on electrochemical reactions, they are capable of handling very rapid charge and discharge rates at high power, repeatedly. There is a limit on the amount of energy that can be stored in an individual ultracapacitor cell, the largest typical cell today stores 3.0Wh (3000F, 2.7V). However, these cells can be connected in series/parallel to meet any energy storage system size requirement, depending on space available and economic considerations. Ultracapacitors excel in applications with short duration energy requirements where battery maintenance and replacement is costly, inconvenient or impossible. Some examples include critical remote systems with a requirement for graceful power down, last gasp, bridge power or voltage sag protection. Also applications with regular, short duration high power demands which normally results in an oversized primary energy source (batteries, generator, etc..). Ultracapacitors can be combined with the primary energy source, and sized to handle only the peak power demands. This enables a downsized primary energy source and improved application performance. Another benefit of ultracapacitors is they are considered to be highly reliable as compared to batteries, and EOL is easily measurable and predictable. With a calendar life >10 years, there are cases where an ultracapacitor can be designed in to last the entire life of a system.
Applications for lithium ion capacitors (LIC) are similar to ultracapacitors (UC) where long life, highly reliable, maintenance free energy storage is required for a product or system. Various types of UPS systems, peak power delivery, voltage sag compensation and hybrid energy storage systems are a few examples. LIC’s have a few performance differences that make them better suited for specific situations as compared to a UC. One example where LIC has an advantage is self-discharge. Due to the physical properties of a UC, there is a leakage current that can cause an ultracapacitor to self-discharge up to 50% voltage in a matter of weeks. An LIC will self-discharge less than 15% over 3 months. In applications with no constant power supply connected, and potentially long times between charge opportunities, the LIC is a better choice. Also, LIC’s store 3 times the energy of an ultracapacitor, so you can fit the same energy requirement in a much smaller space with LIC as compared to UC. In a one cubic liter volume of space you can store 5Wh of usable energy using UC’s. By comparison, you can store up to 18Wh of usable energy with LIC’s in the same one cubic liter volume of space. Both LIC and UC have very long life characteristics, much higher power capability than a battery, and are inherently safer than a battery (no thermal runaway potential).
.jpeg)
LICAP's patented activated dry electrode process enables less binder in the mixture as compared to the competition. Less binder means lower ESR, since binder is non-conductive. Less binder also means we can add more carbon powder in the mixture, which means higher capacitance. Our patented activation process also enables finer binding fibers, and higher fiber quantity resulting in the same strength electrode as other dry electrode processes. Some other ultracapacitor suppliers, and lithium ion battery suppliers use a wet (slurry) process, which has several disadvantages to dry elelctrode.
LICAP's patented activated dry electrode process versus traditional slurry process.
Small factory footprint
Uses less than 25% of the space required by Slurry process
No
Cost
Factory power consumption
Low as compared to slurry
High, use large ovens to remove solvents
Cost
Carbon layer durability
Very durable, no flaking, peeling or cracking
Carbon layer is brittle and can crack/flake off.
Reliability
Residual solvent contamination problem
No, there are no solvents
Yes, can lead to premature failure
Reliability
Uniform Binder Dispersion & Activation
Yes - lower ESR, Higher Capacitance
No
Performance
Welcome! We appreciate your interest in LICAP. Please provide us with your contact information, or contact us by phone or email below. We will be in touch to learn more about your inquiry as soon as possible.