How the RV uses electricity is a very important and difficult problem to solve perfectly. No matter what tricks you have, the core of the RV power supply system must be the battery.
What are the most common types of batteries in RVs? Probably the old lead-acid battery. The performance of lead-acid batteries is too poor, in fact, it is not suitable for use in RVs. I wrote a piece of tofu earlier, you are welcome to read:
Interesting talk about the grievance between the RV and the battery: the lead-acid battery that can't be divorced
Now, more and more RVs use lithium batteries.
We know that there are several types of lithium batteries. Commonly used are lithium iron phosphate batteries, ternary lithium batteries, lithium titanate batteries, etc.
Looking at the characteristics of these types of lithium batteries, it can be said that each has its own merits. But to say that the most suitable for RV use, non-lithium titanate is none other than.
Lithium titanate has several characteristics that make people have to love:
1. Security
The safety of lithium batteries has always been a concern of everyone, and spontaneous combustion accidents have always been a dark cloud shrouded in the electric vehicle industry.
As a modified car, the manufacturer must be a "generalist" in many aspects to complete the modification of the RV. "Generalist" also means that it is definitely not a "specialist". It is impossible for a refit factory to have deep attainments in terms of circuits.
Therefore, the use of lithium batteries in RVs will pose a greater safety hazard. There are reports of RV spontaneous combustion accidents. Many of these accidents are caused by overheating of lithium batteries. Many high-end RVs also insist on using lead-acid batteries, obviously not for cost reasons, but to ensure the safety of the whole vehicle.
Among several lithium batteries, lithium titanate is the safest. It will not smoke, fire, or explode when it is acupuncture, squeezed, or short-circuited, and its safety is almost comparable to that of lead-acid batteries.
2. Support fast charging
It takes several hours to charge an ordinary electric vehicle (even more than 10 hours when charging slowly), which greatly reduces the convenience of the car.
However, due to its unique principle, lithium titanate can achieve extremely fast charging. If conditions permit, it can be fully charged within ten minutes. Those buses that use lithium titanate can be fully charged between driver shifts.
3. Super long life
The cycle life of ordinary lithium batteries is about 3,000 times, and if used frequently, it can be used for about 5 years. Of course, the technology of lithium batteries is also improving, and the life of new batteries will gradually increase.
However, no matter how it is improved, it cannot be compared with lithium titanate batteries. The number of cycles of lithium titanate battery can reach more than 30,000 times, and the service life can reach 30 years. Use it sparingly, and it can simply be left to your next generation as an "ancestral" item.
This one is not just a theoretical calculation. Some wind power stations in the United States have actually verified the long life of lithium titanate batteries.
It can be said that if the RV is replaced with a lithium titanate battery, there is no need to replace the battery for life.
4. Wide temperature range
This winter, electric vehicle users in the north are complaining about low-temperature power outages. In the Northeast, electric vehicles are largely unavailable in winter.
However, those buses in northern cities that use lithium titanate batteries can still run in the cold winter. Lithium titanate batteries can work normally in the range of minus 50 degrees to plus 60 degrees, and the power change is small.
For RVs, this effect is not that big, after all, a lot of RVs go south in winter. However, many RVs still have to face a variety of natural environments (such as entering Tibet and Xinjiang), and lithium titanate with wide temperature resistance will give us a lot of peace of mind.
Just talking about the advantages is not objective. If the whole body is good, lithium titanate has long been popular, but it is obviously not the case.
Disadvantages of Lithium Titanate
A major disadvantage of lithium titanate batteries is that the energy density is low, that is, lithium titanate batteries of the same volume and the same weight have less power storage than ternary lithium batteries and lithium iron phosphate batteries. In the face of many advantages of lithium titanate, car manufacturers still abandon it. The biggest reason is here. Imagine, the electric car you fancy, if the cruising range is reduced from 500 kilometers to 250 kilometers, would you still buy it?
I'm here to argue a few words for lithium titanate. Although this shortcoming makes it out of reach of electric vehicles, it is not unacceptable in RVs. The battery of an electric vehicle needs to store tens of kilowatt-hours of electricity, and the volume and weight have too much influence. However, the battery of the RV can store a few kWh or ten kWh at best. The large volume and weight of lithium titanate are not prominent in the RV.
Taking a step back, its energy density is still much greater than that of lead-acid batteries. Now, so many RVs are using lead-acid batteries. Wouldn't it be fragrant if it was replaced with a fully upgraded lithium titanate?
In this case, why are lithium titanate batteries rarely used in RVs on the market?
price grief
I think the real reason is the price. At present, the price of lithium iron phosphate batteries is two to three times that of lead-acid batteries, and lithium titanate is two to three times that of lithium iron phosphate. A 12V200ah lead-acid battery (not too big) costs about 1,000 yuan on a certain treasure, while the price of lithium titanate with the same capacity is as high as 8,000 yuan. If you install a 600ah, 800ah, this is a huge expense!
Can you accept this price?
The price of lithium titanate is high, partly because the production cost is really high, and partly because there are too few manufacturers. Since lithium titanate is only a marginal option in the field of electric vehicles, the industry is not large. If the scale does not increase, the cost will not come down.
