There are three kinds of battery which can be used in a cold weather:18650 lithium-ion, soft polymer lithium-ion, and phosphate lithium-ion. For each type of low-temperature battery has its advantages and disadvantages.
Low-temperature lithium-ion batteries are a kind of lithium-ion battery that can work normally under extremely low temperatures. They are mainly used in military and industrial which ask work normally in an environment of about -40℃, keep at more than 80% of the original discharge capacity while operating at a minimum of -50℃. But usually for normal applications, such as electric motorcycle, RV, boats, little cars and solar energy storage battery, battery can work at -20℃ is enough.
Using temperature affect battery performance.
Discharge Current
Lowering the ambient temperature causes chemical reactions to proceed more slowly, so a battery used at a low temperature produces less current than at a higher temperature. As cold batteries run down they quickly reach the point where they cannot deliver enough current to keep up with the demand. If the battery is warmed up again it will operate normally.
Battery Resistance
Low temperatures increase the viscosity and tension of the electrolyte thus worsening the diffusion and movement of the lithium ions of the positive and negative electrodes. This increased battery resistance impacts the ability of the battery to operate properly. The main effect is the loss of efficiency of power output, as the majority of the battery’s power will be used to generate heat to reduce battery resistance.
Discharge Capacity
The activity of the lithium ions in the positive electrode material decreases in low temperatures. The cold temperatures will increase the resistance of the electrolyte and decrease the transfer rate of the lithium ions thus reducing the amount of available energy. This could result in up to an 80% capacity loss based on the temperature and discharge rating.
