Lossigy 12V 100Ah LiFePO4 Battery Teardown

[LithiumSolar]

It has GFB pouch cells! Seems identical to the "new Chins" thread I was reading a week or two ago. I assume same manufacturer again.

<video removed so as not to self-promote, ooops>

 

[WYtreasure]

Thanks for reviewing the product. I have 4 of the Lossigy 12V 200Ah LiFePO4 batteries which will be put into service very soon.
The seller has been very good about replying to my inquires but did not provide me with the details you have shared.
Do you have any idea how I can find out what is inside my batteries without opening them?
Should I ask them to send you a bunch of emails to have you review the 200Ah battery?

 

[LithiumSolar]

I have 4 of the Lossigy 12V 200Ah LiFePO4 batteries which will be put into service very soon.
Do you have any idea how I can find out what is inside my batteries without opening them?

I saw they go up to 400Ah. I have to wonder what's inside the larger ones as well. If using the same 50Ah flat pouches, they would have to have groups of 4 in parallel for the 200Ah. I'm not sure any way to tell without opening. The weight would probably be different but don't have anything to reference for comparison.

You could just tell them you saw the video and were wondering if yours has the same GFB cells?

 

[WYtreasure]

Is a pouch cell any better or worse than what most folks build batteries with?

Has anyone built a battery with pouch cells?

 

[Wjm1964]

My understanding is that pouch cells are the same Lifepo4 chemistry but because the pouches were easily damaged in transit etc they now case in aluminium. So nothing different, just don't see them much. Kepworth batteries use pouches so do some eco worthy lifepo4 batteries.

 

[meetyg]

@LithiumSolar I didn't know you were here too. I love your teardown videos!

Anyways, I think pouch cells are cheaper, but lighter in weight. Most EVs (except Tesla and maybe Nissan) use Li-Ion pouch cells in their battery packs. I think that at normal C rates, the pouch cells have less bulging and therefore need less compression. My only worry is that with pouch cells they have less capacity than the prismatic (I don't think you will find large capacities like EVE cells, 100Ah and more). This means that more cells are needed in a pack and are paralleled.
IMO the more parts you have in a pack, there are chances of more problems / less durable.
Also, pouch cells in a pack are less DIY serviceable. Their tabs are usually soldered or welded together.

Having said all if the above, after seeing both Will's and LithiumSolar's teardown videos on these Chins batteries, the build quality seems great and for a pre-built Lifepo4 battery, I wouldn't worry much.
The Chins build quality is far better than a cheap Mosworth/Kepworth battery I got on Aliexpress. They just slapped together some Lifepo4 pouch cells, one on top of the other, with tons of foam spray around it.

Have a look:



This battery is a Lifepo4 20Ah, even though the label says Li-Ion. It was supposed to be a 40Ah, but of course they lied (at least I got a partial refund after a dispute).
As you can see, the build quality is horrible.
I was intending it to be a replacement for my EV's 12v SLA battery, but I decided to go DIY instead.

 

[solardiff]

Here is the youtube link just in case anyone is curious: