We had electronics and power tools on li-ion power widely available for two decades now, yet UPS remain on lead acid in 2020? Why?
In: Technology
10 years ago, lithium batteries were about 10x as expensive as they are now, and there’s a lot of bureaucratic inertia that slows down adoption. First your engineers have to either predict low Li-Ion prices and convince their company to fund a new product development, or you only start developing it after the prices drop.
A UPS is also going to go through a lot of compliance testing, for EMI, electrical safety, and fire safety. You’re also going to need to find new factories to manufacture your batteries, or re-tool your existing ones.
Lithium ion batteries are much more expensive then lead acid batteries. Last time I checked the price including delivery it would be twice as expensive. In addition there are several issues and unknowns related to storing lithium ion batteries fully charged unattended for years at a time. We have far more experience with lead acid batteries in these conditions and have resolved almost all issues with this. So when weight and volume is not a huge issue such as in a UPS or off the grid house then lead acid batteries are still preferred.
You can totally get UPS systems based on Li-Ion if you so choose, but the main reason most remain on lead-acid is because of cost–that many lead-acid batteries are cheaper than the equivalent Li-Ions, and the circuitry to handle charging them is considerably less complex as well. Given the main advantage of Li-Ion is they’re smaller and lighter for the same energy storage, and UPS devices tend to be static installations where you’re not too worried about the size and weight, there’s not a huge benefit from using them in this role.
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