Beyond the Hype: How Engineers Make Lithium-Ion Batteries Safe for Our Agile Workplaces
By Robert Kroon
An August Berres C-Power battery pack. A unique product that makes USB-C power portable or docks into furniture applications for a cordless environment.
Lithium-ion batteries are everywhere, powering everything from our smartphones to electric cars. Here at August Berres, they're the silent workhorses behind products like C-Power, our innovative battery solution for truly agile workplaces. While the advantages of high energy and compact size are certainly appealing, it's essential to remember the earlier safety concerns that raised some eyebrows.
So, how do we confidently integrate these powerful batteries into our most dynamic work environments? It's not magic; it's meticulous engineering.
The Evolution of Battery Safety: From Worry to Reliability
The journey of lithium-ion batteries from early adoption in consumer electronics to their current ubiquity in electric vehicles and smart buildings has been marked by a relentless focus on safety. Early on, concerns about thermal runaway (where a battery overheats and can lead to a fire) were very real. However, engineers have since implemented a multi-layered defense strategy that addresses these risks head-on.
Here’s a look at the best design practices and how we ensure safety, even in sophisticated systems like August Berres C-Power:
The Brain of the Battery: The Battery Management System (BMS)
Think of the BMS as the vigilant guardian of the battery pack. This sophisticated electronic system is continuously at work, monitoring every aspect of the battery's health:
Overcharge/Over-discharge Protection: Just like you wouldn't overfill a tank or let it run completely dry, the BMS prevents the battery from being charged beyond its safe limit or drained too low. These extremes are major culprits in battery degradation and potential failure.
Thermal Management: Batteries perform best within a specific temperature range. The BMS actively monitors the temperature of individual cells and the entire pack. If things get too hot, it can kick in a cooling system or reduce power to prevent dangerous overheating.
Cell Balancing: Over time, individual cells in a battery pack can develop slightly different charge levels. The BMS meticulously balances these charges, ensuring all cells work harmoniously. This prevents stress on individual cells, extending the battery's life and enhancing safety.
It's important to note that not all battery systems on the market follow these critical practices. Some lower-cost products on the market are designed to charge to 100% and discharge all the way to 0%. This practice not only makes them less safe but also significantly reduces the battery's life cycle, leading to premature replacement. From a life cycle cost perspective, the lowest purchase cost may be the highest life cycle cost when you consider the frequency of replacement.
Selecting high-quality components, testing them, and testing the assemblies is the best place to start a battery system design.
Built-in Protection: Physical and Chemical Design
Safety isn't just an afterthought; it's designed into the very structure of the battery:
Advanced Separators: Inside each battery cell, a thin, porous separator keeps the positive and negative electrodes from touching. Modern separators are engineered to melt and effectively shut down a cell if it overheats, preventing a short circuit that could escalate.
Pressure-Relief Mechanisms: Batteries can build up internal pressure, especially if something goes wrong. Both individual cells and the overall pack are equipped with vents and pressure-release devices to safely release this pressure, preventing ruptures or explosions.
Robust Enclosures: The outer casing of a battery pack is no trivial matter. It's built with strong, fire-resistant materials, and often designed with internal segmentation. This modular approach helps to contain any potential thermal event to a single section, preventing it from spreading throughout the entire pack.
For example, at August Berres, our C-Power solution is encased in durable polycarbonate – an expensive but highly impact-resistant material chosen specifically to protect the internal battery components from physical damage, a critical layer of defense.
Tested to Extremes: Rigorous Standards and Validation
Before any battery system makes its way into a product, it undergoes a grueling gauntlet of safety tests. These aren't just simple checks; they simulate the most challenging real-world conditions, including short circuits, deliberate overcharging, physical impacts, and exposure to extreme temperatures. These testing protocols are guided by stringent international standards from organizations like ISO and IEC, ensuring that products are not just "safe enough," but engineered for exceptional reliability.
The Human Element: Respecting the Technology
Even with the most advanced engineering, the ultimate safety of any lithium-ion battery system depends on proper use. Abuse or improper handling can unfortunately bypass even the best engineering intentions.
For example, using unauthorized chargers, physically damaging a battery, or exposing it to extreme conditions beyond its design limits can compromise the built-in safety features and result in dangerous situations.Following manufacturer guidelines for charging, storage, and operation is crucial to ensuring the continued safe performance of these powerful devices.
August Berres C-Power: Powering Agility with Confidence
At August Berres, our C-Power system exemplifies this commitment to safety. By integrating cutting-edge BMS technology, robust physical design (including that impact-resistant polycarbonate casing), and adherence to the highest testing standards, C-Power provides a reliable and secure foundation for fault-managed power and battery solutions. This allows businesses to embrace the agility and flexibility of modern workspaces without compromising on safety.
The improvements in lithium-ion battery safety are impressive, transforming them from a once-cautiously-viewed technology into a reliable and essential component of our powered world.
This August Berres Campfire Desk is designed to support four users with USB-C powered laptops, commonly found in educational settings, using a single C-Power battery pack.
About the author:
Bob Kroon is a recognized thought leader and innovator with over four decades of experience in the electro-mechanical and furniture industries. As the CEO and founder of August Berres, he envisions overcoming the limitations of traditional building power by enabling the Agile Workplace through a smart power ecosystem.
Bob passionately advocates for technologies such as building microgrids, fault-managed power (FMP), and battery-powered Agile Furniture, which are transforming the design and utilization of commercial spaces. Under his leadership, a suite of innovative solutions has been brought to market, including Respond!, Juce, CampFire, and Wallies. These products empower building owners, architects, and facility managers to retrofit buildings for today’s dynamic work environment.
