Performance Analysis of LiFePO4 Battery Energy Storage for Utility-scale PV System

To help integrate the utility-scale PV system into the power grid, the battery energy storage has been introduced as one promising scheme. With the rapid development of battery technology, the lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) battery has attracted attention in the renewable integration applications due to its high power and energy density. The main objective of this work is to analyze the performance of LiFePO4 battery when it is applied to help the integration of utility-scale PV plant system. Three factors are considered as the performance criteria of the battery, including LiFePO4 battery lifetime with cost, the dispatchable-generation duration in one year, and the annual generation of the PV and battery system. Specifically, a developed LiFePO4 physical battery model is incorporated into a utility network model with PV plant systems. The analysis results can improve the understanding of the LiFePO4 battery performance in the application with utility-scale PV systems and provide a design reference for PV plant owners and battery manufacturers.