Show Stopper News — 15 ABC

ShowStopper News The latest news from 15 ABC in Singapore — Asia’s premier battery event

Record attendance as 15 ABC kicks off in style The 15th Asian Battery Conference kicked off on Wednesday with every sign that this was going to be a groundbreaker in the history of the event — both in terms of quality and quantity.

“I think they’ve got the perfect mix for the conference,” one delegate told Batteries International. “The conference agenda is topical and highly relevant to the battery business across Asia but — equally important — the quality of the attendees has made this event, once more, the most significant networking opportunity for the industry in the region.”

Mark Richardson, one of the organizers of the conference, said numbers had continued to grow. “In Macau [2009] attendance was in the 500s, in Hyderabad [2011] we climbed further and now we’re already just under 700.” Although the organizers have a reputation

in eschewing speculation over numbers a final figure when the last registrations are included on Friday could well show a number in the middle 700s.

“As long as they continue to attract the right kind of delegates — as they seem to be doing — this has to be a very positive endorsement of the event

and reflects the importance of our region for the whole energy storage business.”

The geographic picture of the attendees reflected the global quality of attendees with some 60 countries represented.

The 15ABC kicked off on Tuesday with a welcoming drinks party complete with traditional dancers.

‘An explosion waiting to happen’: lithium battery disposal threat to lead recyclers The lead acid battery industry is facing a new challenge from the increasing uptake of lithium ion batteries — the rising unknown risk of lead acid and lithium ion batteries being mixed in recycling process, according to attendees at the 3rd Secondary Lead Conference that preceded this week’s ABC event.

“This is becoming ever more of a risk to both the recycling industry and the lead acid battery that it serves,” says David Prengaman, head of RSR Technologies, the global recycling firm.

Another industry veteran warned that it was “a ticking

time bomb. The amount of lithium batteries approaching the end of their useful life in e-bikes in particular is going to set a disposal problem that will challenge us all. I’ve already heard of two significant lead acid/lithium events. Given the volume of batteries that we need to dispose of, this is an accident waiting to happen.”

The problem is a simple one.

Lithium ion batteries are being produced in configurations that increasingly resemble their lead acid counterparts — A123, for example, produces a li-ion SLI battery identical to its lead acid

counterpart, JCI is producing 48V batteries in both lithium and lead that are close to identical and new automotive batteries containing both a lithium and lead components are being discussed.

The trouble is that in the first stage of battery recycling, battery cases are smashed ahead of smelting. The result? The potential for a major explosion when lithium is attacked by the sulfuric acid from the lead battery.

“Unless we deal with this soon, we’re going to see a maContinued on page 3 >

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September 2013

ALABC in head-to-head lithium test The Advanced Lead Acid Battery Consortium is putting its head on the line with an audacious test where a Korean auto-maker will design and build a super-hybrid incorporating an advanced UltraBattery — where a supercap is integrated with a lead acid cell — in direct competition in terms of performance and price with an identically powered lithium ion battery.

“It’s the first time ever that a car manufacturer has been modify an existing production vehicle to do such a test,” says Allan Cooper, program manager for ALABC. “In the past we’ve had to do retrofits.

This breaks new ground everywhere and could become the de facto standard for the next generation of stop-start cars.”

In 2011 Cooper was part of the team that helped put the LC SuperHybrid together. The car, demonstrated that a hybrid with an Exide Optima battery using regenerative power and a turbo-boost was substantially cheaper than other hybrids and could give better performance.

Although Cooper would not name the car manufacturer, Batteries International understands that this is Hyundai and that the two cars will be displayed at the Geneva Motor Show in March next year. The first LC SuperHybrid was showcased at the same show in 2012.

Continued on page 3 >

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Batteries International • Showstopper News • 15 ABC

Location, location, location — Bangkok or Phuket in 2015?

Part of the secret behind a successful conference is always reckoned to be in the venue itself. In the long history of the ABC meetings some of their venues have been outstanding — many delegates have fond memories of the singing gondolas floating through the waters of the Venetian Hotel in Macau.

And this year, the choice of Singapore’s Shangri-La hotel

has widely been reckoned a masterstroke.

“We appreciate the fact that for ABC to thoroughly reflect the conference needs of the battery industry across Asia that it has to move from country to country,” one delegate told Batteries International.

“But this year’s event has been an exceptional location. This is a world class hotel with facilities to match and its central location both within Singapore and the region has made it a wonderful place to network, to entertain and, of course, to be entertained.”

Mark Stevenson, one of the conference organizers, says that the next ABC is to be held in Thailand. “We’re unsure yet whether it’ll be Bangkok or Phuket — we’re looking to see which will be the better of the two in terms of the choice of hotel and conference facilities but it’ll be held in September 2015,” he says.

New lithium threat to lead acid industry > Continued from page 1

jor event — possibly with severe implications — very soon, and the likelihood of such an event increases with the growing amounts of lithium batteries that are being recycled,” says Tim Ellis, a vice president of R&D at RSR Technologies and chairman of the SAE’s Battery Recycling Committee which helps sets standard for the car industry worldwide.

“Given the volumes of SLI batteries that recyclers deal with — in just one of our plants we process 75,000 per day per smelter — it is impossible to hand-sort the batteries that we deal with. The simplest approach would be to introduce a simple color coding mechanism, say, perhaps lithium ion batteries are branded red and lead

acid green. It may seem oversimple but it’d be effective.”

However, despite the relative ease in introducing such a system, this is unlikely to be introduced soon. The chances of an explosion that would force government intervention — regulation, in other words — is increasing by the day.

The most likely result of regulation would be rules enforcing the return of lead acid and lithium batteries to battery manufacturers. “The result of this would be to force a collapse of our free-market system of lead pricing. That’d be disastrous for us all,” says Ellis.

The SAE Battery Recycling Committee working with groups such as ILA and ABR are developing a forum to address these issues between producers, recyclers and the car industry.

Meanwhile, the European Lead Battery Conference — which alternates each year with ABC in holding an equal-

ly prestigious regional-cuminternational gathering — will be held in Edinburgh, Scotland in September 2014.

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> Continued from page 1

ALABC lithium challenge The move is also controversial in that this requires car manufacturers to agree to a new 48V standard — something that not all are, at least as yet, prepared to do.

The 12V UltraBattery is not sufficiently robust enough to provide sufficient power in all driving situations.

A 48V superhybrid VW

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Passat designed by the same team — ALABC working with technology developer CPT, powertrain developer and systems integrator AVL based in Germany, drive belt specialist Mubea and Provector, a battery management systems firm — was exhibited in Vienna this April.

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Batteries International • Showstopper News • 15 ABC

International Lead Award goes to ILMC’s Brian Wilson in recognition of his humanitarian and environmental impact Brian Wilson program manager of the International Lead Management Center, was awarded the International Lead Award, on Wednesday at a special ceremony on the first day of the Asian Battery Conference.

“This year, the committee has taken a much broader view, particularly in the light of the business we work in and the metal we work with in recognizing the vital role that environmental stewardship plays in our industry,” said David Wilson, president of the ALABC, who presented the award.

Brian has had a full and interesting career. After spending 15 years in the oil business he moved to Britannia Refined Metals — part of MIM Holdings, the Australian mining firm which in turn is now a Glencore company— where over the next 18 years his work spanned smelter operations, industrial relations and human resource management.

“My time there gave me a full insight into the issues that the lead industry faces, and the way it tackles them” he told delegates. “It was a great preparation for the huge variety of work we do in the ILMC.” He was seconded to the ILMC in 1996 from Britannia as program manager where he remains today, tasked with the broad remit to promote the sound environmental management of leadILMC is a key program of the International Lead Association’s Lead Action 21 sustainability initiative.

International remit Brian’s work has taken him around the globe for extended periods, spending months at a time promoting the safe use of lead. Some of these have required intensive work at a local level involving liaison with governments, local communi-

Brian Wilson, an engaging, warm and modest figure, says that part of his enjoyment of his job has been to meet and work with “some of the most remarkable figures in our industry and related to our work” ties, NGOs among the many that are involved in resolving lead-related issues.

“It’s difficult to explain how satisfying the work can be — but also how it can also be heart-breaking,” he says. “One particular example — but it’s just one of many — sticks in my mind. When I was working in Senegal I came across a mother who had lost three children through lead poisoning. She was part of a small

lead smelting outfit that was trying to feed her family and eke a subsistence out of battery recycling. I particularly remember that they were a warm, upright family — but all earning less than a dollar a day.

“Although this was just one case of many in the country, following the efforts of the ILMC we can now be thankful that not a single case of lead poisoning like this has hap-

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pened since our intervention in 2008.”

In a world used to talk of leadership from the top, Brian has always adopted a collegiate approach. “Put simply, we don’t enter a country and impose our own ideas of how to remedy any problems they have with lead,” he says. “Although, of course, we have solutions in mind. Rather we try to get everyone to find, through our guidance, their own answers to dealing with the challenges that face them.”

And this has required liaisons at all levels of the industry.

“Brian has developed a huge body of risk management literature, worked with industry, governments and inter-governmental organizations to set up practical risk management programs in a wide range of countries,” said David Wilson, when presenting the award.

“And overall he has helped create a better image of the lead and lead acid battery industries by demonstrating that lead can be produced, used and recycled safely and provides enormous benefits to society.”

Brian Wilson, an engaging, warm and modest figure, says that part of his enjoyment of his job has been to meet and work with “some of the most remarkable figures in our industry and related to our work”.

Many tributes and congratulations have been made on Brian’s award. “I’m delighted to see Brian’s tremendous contribution to improving the management of lead recognized by this award,” says Andy Bush, head of the ILA. “His passion and dedication to the work of the ILMC is extraordinary and a great example of the lead industry’s commitment to taking responsibility for its products throughout the world.”

The award was created in 2002 and presented for the first time at the 10th ABC.

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Batteries International • Showstopper News • 15 ABC

Ellis takes over from Prengaman at ALABC Tim Ellis, head of R&D for RSR Technologies, was appointed the new interim chairman of the Advanced Lead Acid Battery Consortium at a meeting of this group this week at ABC. Ellis’ appointment needs to be formally ratified by a vote of the ALABC members.

Ellis will fill in for Dave Prengaman who has beeb and who is retiring. Prengaman will continue with the ALABC on an informal/emeritus basis.

Ellis told Batteries Interna-

tional: “This is going to be a hard act to follow when you’ve worked with such world-recognized experts as David, Pat Moseley, Bob Nelson, Dave Rand, Allan Cooper, Michael Mayer and Ken Peters.

“These are the godfathers of the lead acid battery industry and have helped create an organization where cooperative research is treated with such passion and dedication — and, of course, where the quality of their research is so high.”

Scenes from an exhibition

Hammond reveals new K2 expander Hammond revealed this week at the ABC its new product range of expanders designed specifically for use in stop-start and microhybrid batteries.

“This is the first proven product line specifically designed for use in HRPSoC — high rate partial state of charge — applications,” says Achim Luisdorf, vice president for product development at Hammond.

“Our product has been tested by a major automotive firm and shows enormous increases in cycling performance and capacity.”

From left to right: Bo and Anders: from Arctic wastes to Asia’s tropical shores, Källstrom’s finest ever hard at work • ITS’ much-loved sales king Jeff de Pietro — in search of the perfect fetuccine • Sorfin, Mac and Oak sent one of the ABC’s largest delegations: “We take Asia seriously”

Prengaman-Cooper test for Malt electrolyte Everyone in the battery world knows that the perfect electrolyte has to be defined by both temperature and dilution. But battery veterans David Prengaman and Allan Cooper have taken this one-step further — with a new analytic process to be used in search of the perfect Malt Whiskey taste. And especially useful after a rigorous day of conference presentations.

“We call it the PrengamanCooper test,” says David. “It’s a system we’ve devised to find the

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optimum taste in a malt whisky where we try it with and without water or ice. You’d be surprised at the difference this makes.”

However the perfect mix is still elusive.

“If anything I’ve got a bias in favour of a drop of warm water with the malt,” says Allan. “But drinking it neat has its attractions as does the addition of ice.

I’m afraid we may have to test this further before we come up with the definitive answer.”

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Batteries International • Showstopper News • 15 ABC

And the greatest of these is charity F ll marks Full k to G Goonvean Fib Fibres, one off the sponsors of ABC, for their enterprising charity giving at ABC. Faced with a S$1200 bill for hiring a color TV and DVD for two days of the exhibition, John Opie, managing director of the firm decided to cut costs and buy the equipment instead — and then give it to a local charity.

“Once we’d decided to give the 42 inch color TV away to a worthy cause,” says

Charitable giving: Boscawen (l) and Opie

John, ”we asked the hotel for their recommendation which turned out to be a school for handicapped children. We’re pleased to be able to help in this way.”

On your Marks, get set … go Some lie about their age and take years off. Not so Mark Richardson, conference organizer par excellence and one of the

masterminds behind this year’s Secondary Lead and 15 ABC conferences.

He adds them on.

T That’s what he assured Batteries Internattional when interviewed after his surprise b birthday cake appeared in a conference eevent in Singapore on Monday. ““I always tell people that I’m 40,” he says. ““But really I’m in my very early 20s. It’s a ttough and demanding life being a confereence organizer. Sometimes it shows. And

The Hon Evelyn Boscawen, head of the group that owns Goonvean, will be presenting the LG LED TV to the charity at 5.30pm on Friday at the hotel. nobody in the battery business will talk to you until you’re at least 40. Or, failing that, have 30 years experience in the industry.”

Irrespective of his calendar age his closely guarded birth date was discovered by fellow conference mastermind, Mark Stephenson, still only a sprightly 30 something (he says). He organized a surprise cake with a guesstimate of candles this Monday.

“Rats my secret is out!” our birthday boy whispered to Batteries International.

Eyes closed our Mark blew out his 23 candles.

Lame excuses “I’m sorry but killer bees attacked me on the way to the airport.” “Big apologies but I couldn’t come — the dog ate my passport.” “Couldn’t make it, aliens attacked my house and it was school holidays, anyway.”

Yes, just three of the feeble excuses heard for the stayat-homes that won’t share the jet-lag pain for attending one of Asia’s best energy storage events.

We thought we’d heard them all till Terry Hartman, a sales exec for Bitrode the battery testing firm rang in to say he couldn’t come to Singapore.

“Sorry I couldn’t come but I’ve fractured my leg severely when …swimming in the Mississippi.”

Talk about a lame excuse.

And talk about the hours of photoshop work needed to convince us with these photos.

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