There are pros and cons associated with the two main battery chemistries used in solar + storage projects. Lead-acid batteries have been around much longer and are more easily understood but have limits to their storage capacity. Lithium-ion batteries have longer cycle lives and are lighter in weight but inherently more expensive.
There are pros and cons associated with the two main battery chemistries used in solar + storage projects. Lead-acid batteries have been around much longer and are more easily understood but have limits to their storage capacity. Lithium-ion batteries have longer cycle lives and are lighter in weight but inherently more expensive.
Can one combine the pros of each chemistry to make one cost-effective, high-capacity battery bank?
Does one have to dismantle their lead-acid battery bank just to tap into the functions of a new lithium-ion battery? Can one add a few cheaper lead-acid batteries to their lithium system to meet a certain kilowatt-hour capacity?
All important questions with a less defined answer: it depends. It is easier and less risky to stick with one chemistry, but there are some workarounds.
Gordon Gunn, electrical engineer at Freedom Solar Power in Texas, said it is likely possible to connect lead-acid and lithium batteries together, but only through AC coupling.
“You absolutely cannot connect lead-acid and lithium batteries on the same DC bus,” he said. “At best, it would ruin the batteries, and at worst…fire? Explosion? A rending of the space-time continuum? I don’t know.”
K. Fred Wehmeyer, senior VP of engineering at lead-acid battery company U.S. Battery Manufacturing Co., provided further explanation.
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