Supercapacitor Performance Characterization for Renewables Applications

As levels of variable renewable energy penetration increase, the variable power outputs present significant integration challenges. Traditionally, these challenges have been met with fast-acting, but expensive, dispatchable sources. A promising energy storage technology to buffer the variable power outputs is the use of supercapacitors due to their fast-acting and power dense nature, combined with their excellent cyclability. The goal of this research is to determine both the useable life of cells cycled under normal conditions, and how the cell parameters change over the course of the supercapacitor's life. Two commercial supercapacitors rated at 3000 F, purchased from a major distributor and used as received, were cycled to 25,000 cycles, and the capacitance and equivalent series resistance were monitored. As more data is obtained, models can be created to allow control systems to estimate the health and remaining life of individual supercapacitors in energy storage applications.