Li-ion satellite cell development: past, present and future

High energy density, lithium secondary cells are very attractive for use on future spacecraft. However, a number of technical challenges remain. Specifically, the ability of lithium secondary cells to achieve the high cycle life and long calendar life required for use on high-reliability spacecraft, as well as the difficulties in scaling up the available small cell technology to larger sizes required for spacecraft power systems. The purpose of this paper is to summarize efforts being undertaken by Eagle-Picher Industries (EPI) to develop Li-ion technology for spacecraft applications. The intent is to keep the satellite community abreast of recent developments at the cell level and to help direct sound decisions in power system design variations from the current nickel-hydrogen (Ni-H₂) and nickel-cadmium (Ni-Cd) technologies. The emphasis of the paper is the summation of past, present and future work