Technical Paper
Effects of Pulsed—Current Discharge Waveforms on Lead—Acid Traction Cell Performance
1982-02-01
820179
Chopper-type controllers commonly used in electric vehicle propulsion systems impose pulsed-current discharge conditions on the battery that influence both its internal power losses and available energy. In order to optimize propulsion system design, those discharge parameters that affect battery performance must be understood and characterized. In a series of tests performed on Exide EV-106 and EE-IV lead-acid traction batteries, a range of operating values were examined for current pulse frequency, average current discharge rate and pulse-to-average current level ratio. For each test, one parameter was selected as the variable while the other two parameters were maintained at fixed levels. Constant-current discharges were periodically performed during each test to relate battery performance for equivalent pulsed and constant current discharge conditions.