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Prius Battery rebalance thread

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Technical Discussion' started by Oreynid, Dec 12, 2013.

  1. jdenenberg

    jdenenberg EE Professor

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    Settings for the
    The settings for the Supermate DC6 are the same as they are dependent on the battery under charge, not the product doing the charging (I used a DC6 for my rebalancing and it did a good job). I also suggest setting up a 12v battery and a charger that can supply the required current so that a power outage doesn't interrupt the process as you want to record the discharge capacities per cycle to identify the health of your modules.

    JeffD
     
  2. TampaPrius.com

    TampaPrius.com Active Member

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    Thanks
     
  3. MTL_hihy

    MTL_hihy Active Member

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    One more caveat when using these chargers is to make sure it goes into discharge mode first then charge mode or you will be severely overcharging the battery as I did by accident (battery will swell and begin to vent and you will hear some bubbling from within the cells........so this is why you always make sure any modules being charged are well clamped). You can do this by making sure to start the battery cycling on DCHG>CHG screen (then hold down the start button until the cycle starts). I have lowered my charging down to 2A and capacity to 7000 mAh for now to keep any heat issues and potential overcharging in check.
     
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  4. Oreynid

    Oreynid Junior Member

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    It's been far longer than a week but I just want to report that the car has been holding up strong. I'm getting an average of 40MPG, which is lower than I prefer but not bad considering I need to replace my O2 sensors, go back to low rolling resistance tires of correct size, and taking into account the high mileage.

    She drinks about a quart of oil between changes but has otherwise been reliable transportation. Here's hoping the rebuilt pack lasts for another 100-150K!

    I hope my documented results have helped someone.
     
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  5. LucasElectric

    LucasElectric New Member

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    Question for you, why did you recommend discharging at 1A or the charger/dischargers highest setting? My dischargers go up to 2A.
     
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  6. MTL_hihy

    MTL_hihy Active Member

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    The max setting on my charger only goes to 1A but I would suggest using the highest discharge setting your chargers are capable of. Ideally you would do a faster discharge and a slower charge (to keep heat to a minimum at the higher SOC) but I haven't found an off the shelf system (or at reasonable cost) that can handle this situation with multiple batteries yet so time is the sacrifice paid for being safe while cycling these batteries.
     
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  7. Coolride17

    Coolride17 Junior Member

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    I've been following these recharging threads, and am wondering if a cell can be pulled straight up, and out, or have to be removed all from the one side of the traction battery case? I've got a bad cell 3 out from the batts ecu. Thanks
     
  8. MTL_hihy

    MTL_hihy Active Member

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    I think you'll find you need to do some pretty decent disassembly regardless so it's probably best to just pull it and lay it out on the bench for testing.
     
  9. Houston Hybrids

    Houston Hybrids Junior Member

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    You need to remove all the 8mm's from underneath the pack (both sides) all the way up to the modules you want to remove. Then remove the four 12mm bolts that hold the compression plate to the pack. Then you can just slide them out from the side. Just be careful not to snag a module on the green wire that runs across the top of the battery :)

    Jessica
     
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  10. Coolride17

    Coolride17 Junior Member

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    Thanks so much , got it all figured out now. I'll have to do it again soon, and balance the pack. I didn't have a chance this time around, and needed the car for another month before it can be down for a length of time.
     
  11. Coolride17

    Coolride17 Junior Member

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    Thanks , your right, it had to come all apart anyway.
     
  12. alexeft

    alexeft Member

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    as far as I can see, gen3 modules can be used to rebuild a gen2 battery. Is that correct?
     
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  13. jdenenberg

    jdenenberg EE Professor

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    Yes, but it is better not to mix modules from different generations.

    JeffD
     
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  14. alexeft

    alexeft Member

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  15. kiwi

    kiwi Member

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    That's right. Do not waste your time on that. Last week a guy with NHW-11 battery pack in the back of his car - showed up asking for a quick test of the pack which was fiddled with and few modules from NHW-20 were installed, mixed with the older ones. Told him not to waste his time - attached or analyser and showed him the result of what he has done - blue, yellow and green bars - voltage difference up to few volts between the modules - we did not even have to run full test. Those 38 module packs are tricky ones as you would need donor modules from possibly two other newer Priuses (NHW-20 - 28 modules) but those have to be the same capacity - that is where our Battery Analyser is a paramount to have. Of course you need to have a choice of second hand packs - even if you've got two packs from the wrecker - fresh year, low mileage - that still does not mean you can mix them - need to run capacity test first.
     
  16. alexeft

    alexeft Member

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    Thanks but I was asking about using ZVW30 modules in an NHW20 battery. Not gen2 to gen1.
     
  17. kiwi

    kiwi Member

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    Those have the same specs as per EV Energy. Then just make sure capacity is the same and you'll be fine.
     
  18. jdenenberg

    jdenenberg EE Professor

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    But they have a lower series resistance than early Gen2 modules (later ones may be similar to the Gen3 modules, but I have not done the tests).

    JeffD
     
  19. kiwi

    kiwi Member

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    Probably talking about different things here:
    The link to EV Energy from my page is:
    NiMH Battery Specifications » HYBRIDS
    Direct link is
    Battery Module NP2 | Products | Development, manufacture, and sale of a hybrid car and the battery for electric vehicles (battery) | Primearth EV Energy Co., Ltd.
    The previous modules (plastic sides not the silver ones) are seems to be no longer in production and they were used on ESTIMA 2001, Prius NHW-11 etc. Those were known as being leaky. NP2 modules claimed to have improved interconnections between cells inside - lowering resistance as a result.
    There is no information that anything different from NP2 moduels (used in NHW20) are used in newer Priuses or Camry (i.e.. 2014).
    What is different now - is the way the electronics has being designed for new Prius and Camry. It is now different ECU responcible for BMS.
    Note: not to be confused - better to use the code rather than GEN2/3 etc as in USA they never officially had NHW-10 which is in fact GEN-1 Prius and they refer to GEN1 as being NHW-11 (GEN-2 as it is known in Japan, and Oceania).
     
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  20. alexeft

    alexeft Member

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    Thanks for the thorough answer!