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Recharging Traction dead Battery

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Technical Discussion' started by SteveWlf, Nov 10, 2012.

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  1. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    Charging circuit. It is strongly suggested that you monitor the battery voltage at all times and if possible the current. Keep the current below 250ma and charge out of the vehicle with a fan to assist cooling. tCad1.png
    The thumbnail hardly shows on my screen hope you can see it.
     
    #21 Britprius, Nov 12, 2012
  2. jdenenberg

    jdenenberg EE Professor

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    Correct, the interlock switch is read by one of the ECUs. The two halves are connected together when in "Ready" mode (require the interlock to be in place) by the two rather large relays in the battery as commanded by an ECU.

    JeffD
     
    #22 jdenenberg, Nov 12, 2012
  3. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    Steve, As in your (18) yes it should be possible to measure each portion of the battery from the link to the output terminals as you suggest. Be careful though 115v can still give a nasty tingling sensation if you come into contact with it, and at the current available will vaporize meter probes if shorted.

    John (Britprius)
     
    #23 Britprius, Nov 12, 2012
  4. SteveWlf

    SteveWlf Old-on-Hold

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    Yes, you are correct. When I removed the cover I could see that the the Service/Safety disconnect is not in the center of the battery pack as I suggested. It is off center by a few modules. Still performs the same function.

    I picked up the use replacement battery today and got there just in time. Another fellow was there and had removed the cover to test the individual modules the car owner told me that this fellow had found the battery in good condition and was going to buy it. I objected that I had earlier called and told him I was on my way (120 miles) and would bring cash. CASH TALKs. the other buyer couldn't get the money today because it is a bank holiday. He! He! However, I checked the modules before counting out the cash and the preliminary voltage readings were consistantly between 7.71 & 7.75 with the modules on the very ends reading 7.50 and 5.52.

    Not sure what that means, being the ones on the end of the pack??? Anyway the total pack is 215 vdc.

    Do you think there is any need for balancing these two out liers??

    I'm going to pull the battery out of the car tomorrow and take it to the bench and will report what problems I find there.

    Steve
     
    #24 SteveWlf, Nov 12, 2012
  5. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    The module at 5.52V is dead. The one at 7.5V might be restorable if charged. I hope you didn't pay too much for that replacement battery.

    You might be able to swap in a good module from the original battery depending upon the module voltages present there.
     
    #25 Patrick Wong, Nov 12, 2012
  6. SteveWlf

    SteveWlf Old-on-Hold

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    I see I had a Typos in the voltage of those two end modules. They are 7.50 and 7.52 volts, while all the rest are from 7.71 to 7.75 volts. So the largest variation is .25 volts, and this is after the battery has been sitting for 10-14 days.

    Is this going to be close enough??


    Steve
     
    #26 SteveWlf, Nov 12, 2012
  7. jdenenberg

    jdenenberg EE Professor

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    Steve,

    I would at least charge those two modules to a voltage matching the others. You will need to let them rest for a day or so after charging to determine that they stay in range with the others as the surface charge will quickly drain off. You could charge them to a somewhat higher voltage and then discharge them to match the others and then check the voltages again the next day.

    JeffD
     
    #27 jdenenberg, Nov 13, 2012
    Keith H likes this.
  8. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    Steve I agree with jdenenberg that charging and then discharging down to the same voltage as the other modules is the way to go for the two end modules.

    It does seem a little strange because it is usually modules near the middle of the pack that start to fail first, due to the center of the pack being hotter and the cells in those modules drying out. But having said all that the voltages do not seem at all bad, "no dead cells".

    I will be interested to see what your original battery produces in individual module voltages after standing for so long.

    John (Britprius).
     
    #28 Britprius, Nov 13, 2012
  9. SteveWlf

    SteveWlf Old-on-Hold

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    In antisapation that I will need to recondition many of not all of the the modules in the old HV battery I'm pulling out of the car, I purchased a iMAX B6-AC B6AC on ebay. Should have that next week and will take care of these 2 modules then.
     
    #29 SteveWlf, Nov 13, 2012
  10. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    Keep us informed.

    John (Britprius)
     
    #30 Britprius, Nov 13, 2012
  11. SteveWlf

    SteveWlf Old-on-Hold

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    Strange things happened today. The New accessory battery was near dead to begin with. Couldn't find anything left on since I installed it 2 days ago. Put it on charge and back to normal now.
    Then, before swapping out the HV battery pack I thought I would check the HV at the contactor terminals where I had measured less than a volt previously. I had removed the safety interlock to test the built in fuse and found it good. This time I installed it locked it in and pushed the handle down. Measured the contactor terminals and got 207 vdc. Puzzled on that a while and then I realized I have two of these interlocks, one from the car and one from the replacement battery assembly. Bad fuse in one, as it turns out. It had come out of the Road Kill Prius which and a font end damage severe enough to totally distroy the Invertor. Surprised there wasn't evidence of a fire. Fuse must have been "fast acting".

    So maybe there is some hope for the origanal battery and I can have a spare.

    I did manage to get the engine to start but that is going to be addressed in a new Post.
    See you all there.
    Thanks for all your help and encouragement.

    Steve
     
    #31 SteveWlf, Nov 13, 2012
  12. Britprius

    Britprius Senior Member

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    I thought there was something strange with no voltage at all being measured, "why I asked about the terminals you measured at etc". 207 volts sounds as though you have another good battery as that should be enough to start the car and then be charged in the normal way.

    Good luck.

    John (Britprius).
     
    #32 Britprius, Nov 13, 2012
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