You’re only as good as your weakest link and in a series string of batteries, that could be a single cell. The answer of course is parallel string offering redundancy – or a piece of electronics that switches cells into parallel operation when one cell goes down.
And that’s exactly what German-based Automatic Storage Device (ASD) showed at Intersolar this week. They call it Pacadu (parallel automatic charge and discharge unit). ASD has developed a new electronic device that can be installed onto each individual battery cell. The innovation allows any number of cells to be combined in a storage system, irrespective of their size, manufacturer, storage technology or power output.
“We have succeeded in finding a solution that overcomes the technical problems caused by connecting battery cells in series. This marks a real revolution, not only for energy storage systems but for every single battery used around the world. The parallel connection of battery cells has so many advantages that in four years’ time the practice of connecting cells in series will have become a thing of the past,” explains Wolfram Walter, Managing Director of ASD.