ThunderSky

ThunderSky Lithium Battery Ltd., founded in Aug 1998, is a company whose major manufacturing business is the production and development of Lithium-ion battery. It is part of theThunderSky Energy Group. Among the electric vehicle hobbyist community, these batteriesare important because of their low-cost and higher energy density, but vary substantially inquality and behavior.

Company Summary

The company has its headquarters located in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China. The founder, Executive President, Mr.Xingjia Zhong, is the only Asian expert serving on the UN Committee of Power. He has extensive experience and knowledge in the field of Power Lithium-ion battery, its application and uses on electric vehicles.

The company has patented the "solid state lithium ion power battery” and has gained a number of patents in over 26 countries and regions. Thunder Sky is also the research and development (R&D) base and center for China's project of power lithium battery research in the nation’s “Plan 863”. TS lithium-ion batteries have been approved by the United States Department of Transportationas safe batteries for its vehicles.

Thunder Sky has many scientists, some of which have been in this field of expertise for decades. They are all in key positions within the company. Thunder Sky is also the base and centre for the National 863 Plan of Power Lithium Battery Research. The Thunder Sky series of Power Lithium Batteries has been awarded with many nation-wide prizes, such as
* Quality inspected for production eligibility
* Production Quality Credible
* Famous Chinese brand
* Chinese guaranteed quality production
* Reputable Patented Corporation
* One of the best ten famous brand for the most competitive batteries in vehicular movement in China

The company is a hi-tech enterprise, which integrates research with manufacture. It holds the advantages of having patented products and also resident experts in key areas relating to the design, development and manufacture of Lithium Ion Batteries. It also possesses ODM capability for customers in civil and national defense.

Battery Line

TS-LC-P-XXXAH-A
* "A" means the battery cathode and anode terminal are in the same direction
* "B" means the battery cathode and anode terminal are in opposite directions
* "XXXAH" means the nominal capacity of the battery
* "P" quadrate form / "R" cylindrical form
* "LC" positive pole of LiFCoO2
* "LF" positive pole of LiFFePO4
* "LM" positive pole of LiFNiMnO2
* "TS" brand name ThunderSky

LFP typically refers to their Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFFePO4) batteries.

Balancing Systems

Lithium Ion batteries require cell balancing during charging and protection from over-charge and over-discharge. The [http://www.evpower.com.au/-Integrated-Lithium-Battery-Systems-.html TS-90 Battery Balancing System] has been developed specifically for large format Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries such as Thunder Sky LFP series. It can also work with other battery chemistries with minimal modification. The TS90 system consists of Cell Modules, one for each cell, and a master control unit. The cell modules perform the balancing function and also monitor the voltage of each cell in the battery.

Electric Vehicles

ThunderSky batteries are found in a number of Chinese electric vehicles,and is a favored battery for electric vehicle conversions because of itsrelatively low cost.

Track Record

Consider a TS-LP90AH cell, rated at 90AH.

1. 70-80 AH capacity, but only when quite warm. 2. 10-20 AH if they aren’t warm. 3. High internal resistance, so they heat up with only a 18A draw. Likely to overheat quickly at higher draws. 4. NO CUSTOMER SUPPORT WHATSOEVER 5. Not a chance of meeting their rated max output current. 6. Can only charge slowly (20A or so max). Some cells overheat quickly above that rate, some just won’t accept higher rates without going over voltage. 7. Wildly inconsistent quality control. Cells vary by quite a bit.

( The LP-cells contrary to LM,LC and LFP is an automobile batterie and not convient for other purposes like electric vehicles. )

Links

* [http://www.thunder-sky.com/ Company website]
* [http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/ThunderSky/ ThunderSky on Yahoo Groups]
* [http://www.evaosd.com/ Electric Vehicle Association of San Diego]
* [http://www.metricmind.com/ac_honda/battery.htm Honda conversion using ThunderSky batteries]