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Lithium-ION Batteries

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Cost-Effective LindeMH High Availability LindeMH Safe LindeMH Sustainable LindeMH Lithium Forklift FAQs LindeMH

ion Maximum uptime and flexibility

Increasing cost pressure, tight timelines and unpredictable order peaks are changing the requirements placed on warehouse equipment and forklifts. Material handling equipment needs to be constantly available whilst also remaining safe and cost-effective to operate at all times. This puts energy systems to the test.

One challenge in electromobility is ensuring that electric forklifts have the same availability as internal combustion engine powered trucks (i.e. gas and diesel). This is where Lithium-ION (Li-ION) technology comes into play. Compared to lead-acid battery technology, Li-ION batteries provide a whole range of advantages for electric forklift and warehouse trucks such as:

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    Shorter and quicker reloading

    Li-ION batteries can be recharged in short intervals, making time-consuming battery changes a thing of the past

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    HIGHER ENERGY EFFICIENCY

    Li-ION batteries provide up to 30% more energy thanks to higher energy density and high overall system efficiency

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    POWER RIGHT UP TO THE END OF ITS CHARGE

    When using a forklift truck powered by a Li-ION battery, drivers will find there is no loss of performance — even when the battery has a low charge

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    USER-FRIENDLY

    Li-ION batteries are maintenance-free and easy to clean, meaning no leaking of hazardous battery gases and acids

The Ideal Solution Suited for Every Application

  • Whether indoors or outdoors, intensive multi-shift operations or in refrigerated storage, Li-ION batteries will serve well in any application.
  • Li-ION batteries are emission-free — unlike lead-acid batteries — so they’re perfectly suited to applications where a high degree of sensitivity is required, like the pharmaceutical or food industry.
  • Li-ION batteries are an environmentally friendlier option, and are the perfect and equally as powerful alternative to internal combustion forklifts.

The advantages of Linde Li-ION Technology

Linde Li-ION batteries for forklift trucks and warehouse equipment improve operation and handling. They increase vehicle availability and make operation more economical, safer and sustainable.

Cost-Effective

Li-ION batteries increase the efficiency of the fleet in operation, as a result from the technological advantages of the energy system. This in turn provides many time and cost saving advantages.

  • Compared to lead-acid batteries, when a Linde Li-ION battery and Linde charger are combined, energy yields increase by 30% — which lowers energy costs.
  • Vehicle control and battery management systems communicate with each other perfectly via a CAN bus interface.
  • With CAN bus, the battery system can balance peak loads while at the same time provide sufficient energy — thus protecting the battery, and prolonging its operating life.
  • Lead-acid batteries come with high maintenance and handling costs, these are completely eliminated when using Li-ION batteries.
  • With a LI-ION battery system, there is no need to purchase a second battery as you don’t need to replace it, nor replenish it with water like lead-acid batteries.
  • Li-ION batteries do not require a complex charging infrastructure, with separate battery room and suction device to remove gases, like lead-acid batteries do.
  • Instead, Li-ION battery charging stations can be set up at best suited waypoints, such as near a break area, for quick recharging.

Lean Charging Infrastructure

High availability in a warehouse environment ensures smooth and efficient operations. This is one of the main strengths of Linde's Li-ION batteries. Unlike lead-acid batteries, the technology is highly efficient and flexible in terms of charging cycles and frequencies.

  • Linde Li-ION batteries can achieve a full charge cycle within one hour.
  • Depending on the intensity of the operation, a quick recharge during a lunch break can have the vehicle ready to go for several hours.
  • With lead-acid batteries, it is recommended to only start full charging cycles in order to protect them — Li-ION batteries don’t require this.
  • Extremely short interim charging of just a few minutes is recommended for Li-ION batteries. With an ideal state of charge at 20-80% of the total capacity — this flexibility significantly increases the availability of the vehicle.
  • Linde's CAN bus technology allows settings to be customised in order to protect against deep discharge.
  • When approaching the minimum residual capacity, the battery management for Li-ION batteries reduces the performance of drive and lift functions.
  • This value can be set according to the customer's individual needs, in order to strike the right balance between truck availability and battery protection.
  • There are two different capacities for each type of Li-ION battery, this enables businesses to define their vehicles' energy supply according to the individual operating intensity. For eg, it’s possible to use a forklift with a large Li-ION battery in a three-shift operation without needing to stop to charge it during any of those shifts.

Safe

Linde's Li-ION technology offers the highest level of driver and vehicle safety. We have developed a comprehensive safety concept for the entire system, and during the development phase, the batteries undergo a rigorous program of stress and crash tests.

  • Hydrogen produced by lead-acid batteries can turn into dangerous oxyhydrogen gas — Li-ION batteries do not contain hydrogen, eliminating this risk.
  • Battery replacement and maintenance is not required for Li-ION batteries, meaning workers are no longer exposed to any risk of injury.
  • To ensure that Li-ION batteries are protected, even in extreme situations, we incase them in a robust compartment and subject it to crash tests of the maximum load.
  • The strong 25mm thick steel housing of the compartment prevents the penetration of a fork — even at high speed.
  • This system applies at cell, module and battery level.
  • Battery management ensures optimum battery usage by constantly monitoring and coordinating vehicle functions, charging processes and the battery system.
  • This prevents damage caused by overpressure, overheating, over-charging or deep discharge.
  • The vehicle and battery are CE-compliant, plus the entire system – consisting of vehicle, battery and charger – carries the CE seal of approval for tested safety.

Sustainable

Li-ION batteries are highly efficient, state-of-the-art energy systems that protect people and the environment.

  • Linde's Li-ION batteries meet all sustainability requirements, making their operation completely emission-free.
  • The production of Li-ION batteries produces fewer pollutants than that of conventional lead-acid batteries.
  • The use of Li-ION powered forklifts and warehouse equipment makes any application significantly more energy-efficient, resulting in the same overall output being achieved, using less energy.
  • Li-ION batteries have a longer life cycle than lead-acid batteries, meaning they don’t have to be replaced as often, resulting in a higher conservation of environmental resources.

Li-ION Comprehensive Recycling Process

At Linde Material Handling, we endeavour to maintain a sustainable approach at every stage of our products' lifecycles — and we are pioneers when it comes to recycling Li-ION batteries in intralogistics.

Despite the long service life of Li-ION batteries, they do reach the end of their performance at some point. When this happens, the batteries can be returned to any Linde network service partner. From there, they are sent to a certified recycling company, with which Linde has set up a comprehensive recycling process. The batteries are disassembled and their components sorted where:

  • Electronic components and cables go into regular recycling
  • Battery cells are melted and metallurgically processed, and the valuable elements such as cobalt and nickel are reused

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Download to learn more

Learn more about Linde Li-ION Batteries in the downloads below.

LindeMHLinde Li-ION 24V LindeMHLinde Li-ION 48V LindeMHLinde Li-ION 90V

FAQs

The use of Lithium-ION powered electric forklifts is growing each year and that’s not surprising. They’re generally more energy efficient, cheaper to run and easier to maintain when compared to lead-acid batteries. But there’s a lot of questions you might have if you’re considering Lithium-ION for your business.

Read some of our frequently asked questions about Lithium-ION and if you can’t see the answer to your question, Contact us today to learn more.

Lithium-ion batteries are safe for forklifts. Linde’s lithium-ion batteries have a multi-level safety system at cell, module, and housing levels, alongside a battery management system with comprehensive protective functions, which protects against multiple safety risks. They are also built and tested to the KION Group’s modern safety standards, making them one of the safest forklift power sources available.

Depending on their composition, Linde lithium-ion forklift batteries have a life expectancy of more than 2,500 full cycles. Unlike the “theoretical” cycle life of other technologies, this extended cycle life is easily achieved in the real world due to lithium-ion batteries being less susceptible to poor maintenance and charging practices. The only thing your lithium-ion battery needs is sufficient charging opportunities.

There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to your power solution; it depends on what would be most suitable for your application.

A lithium-ion battery, while offering higher energy density, opportunity charging and cost-efficiency, might not suit all applications.

At Linde, we do not favour one energy system over another. Instead, we work with you to determine which solution will best meet your needs. With enough information about your application, we can calculate precisely what the most suitable power solution would be for you.

WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR LITHIUM-ION OPTIONS?

We have a Li-ION energy option available in each of our product ranges. Contact us today to find out how we can improve your energy efficiencies.

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