Review of Degradation Mechanism and Health Estimation Method of VRLA Battery Used for Standby Power Supply in Power System

Abstract

As the backup power supply of power plants and substations, valve-regulated lead-acid (VRLA) batteries are the last safety guarantee for the safe and reliable operation of power systems, and the batteries’ status of health (SOH) directly affects the stability and safety of power system equipment. In recent years, serious safety accidents have often occurred due to aging and failure of VRLA batteries, so it is urgent to accurately evaluate the health status of batteries. Accurate estimation of battery SOH is conducive to real-time monitoring of single-battery health information, providing a reliable guarantee for fault diagnosis and improving the overall life and economic performance of the battery pack. In this paper, first, the floating charging operation characteristics and aging failure mechanism of a VRLA battery are summarized. Then, the definition and estimation methods of battery SOH are reviewed, including an experimental method, model method, data-driven method and fusion method. The advantages and disadvantages of various methods and their application conditions are analyzed. Finally, for a future big data power system backup power application scenario, the existing problems and development prospects of battery health state estimation are summarized and prospected.