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US 4,287,267 AGranted
Zinc-chlorine battery plant system and method
AssigneeEnergy Development Associates, Inc.
InventorsCurtis C. Whittlesey, Matthew S. Mashikian
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AssigneeEnergy Development Associates, Inc.
InventorsCurtis C. Whittlesey, Matthew S. Mashikian
Estimating the term…
A zinc-chlorine battery plant system and method of redirecting the electrical current around a failed battery module. The battery plant includes a power conditioning unit, a plurality of battery modules connected electrically in series to form battery strings, a plurality of battery strings electrically connected in parallel to the power conditioning unit, and a bypass switch for each battery module in the battery plant. The bypass switch includes a normally open main contact across the power terminals of the battery module, and a set of normally closed auxiliary contacts for controlling the supply of reactants electrochemically transformed in the cells of the battery module. Upon the determination of a failure condition, the bypass switch for the failed battery module is energized to close the main contact and open the auxiliary contacts. Within a short time, the electrical current through the battery module will substantially decrease due to the cutoff of the supply of reactants, and the electrical current flow through the battery string will be redirected through the main contact of the bypass switch.
A method of discontinuing the electrical current flow through at least one secondary energy storage battery module in a battery plant having a plurality of battery modules connected in series to form a battery string, a plurality of said battery strings connected electrically in parallel, first switching means for controlling the supply of at least one reactant electrochemically transformed in said battery modules, and second switching means for redirecting the electrical current flow through said battery plant, comprising the steps of:
A method of bypassing a failed electrochemical cell in a string of electrochemical cells connected electrically in series, each of said cells having power terminal means for directing electrical current flow into and out of said cell, a normally open switch connected across said power terminal means, and a normally closed switch for controlling the supply of at least one reactant electrochemically transformed in said cell, comprising the steps of:
A method of isolating a string of secondary energy storage batteries connected electrically in series in a battery plant having a plurality of said battery strings connected electrically in parallel, where each of said battery strings includes a first normally-closed switch for directing electrical current flow into and out of said battery string, and a second normally-closed switch for directing electrical current flow to an auxiliary means for supplying at least one reactant electrochemically transformed in each of said secondary energy storage batteries in said string, comprising the steps of:
A battery plant system, comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.