HUMIDIFICATION SPOTLIGHT


Munters dehumidifi cation systems chosen for battery research


The University of St Andrews had a requirement to create a state-of-the-art battery dry room. This facility was designed to achieve precise and ultra- low dewpoint conditions that are critical when working with sensitive chemistries such as lithium and sodium-ion.


CFD


Modelling was used to help ensure suitable airfl ow could be achieved around all equipment, and an


equipment access door was also installed.


N


estled on the banks of the Eden Estuary, four miles north of St Andrews and part of the world-famous University of St Andrews, lies Eden Campus. Originally a distillery in 1855 and later a paper mill, Eden Campus was repurposed by the university in 2010 to become a centre for renewable technologies and innovation. Its aim is to bring together researchers, local businesses, and start-ups to develop smart energy solutions. Within the campus lies the newly built Colin Vincent Centre for Battery Technology, a facility that showcases the university’s world-leading battery research programs. This facility manages the production of commercial-scale batteries, enabling scale-up from research to production scale, fi rmly placing them at the forefront of research into new battery chemistries. At the heart of this building lies an ultra-low dewpoint battery dry room, designed, supplied, and installed by Munters. This climate-controlled battery dry room is central to their battery research and critical for handling sensitive chemistries such as lithium and sodium-ion.


Project and installation Munters was approached as a known provider of battery


dry room solutions, having seen other similar systems at universities throughout the UK. Working closely with the University, Munters recommended a bespoke turnkey battery


dry room that included HVAC plant installation, commissioning and maintenance. The proposal was based on a standard-built dry room constructed inside a brand-new building, the Colin Vincent Centre for Battery Technology. Depending on occupancy, the internal dry room area


measures approximately 119m2 and typically operates between -40° to -50°C dewpoint. Access into the dry room is via an airlock built on the outside of the dry room. This important feature protects room conditions from outside air when people enter and exit the dry room, which is operated eff ectively through a traffi c light system. When considering the requirements for this dry room, it was important to understand the needs of the university and its users now and allow for future developments of chemistries. CFD Modelling was used to help ensure suitable airfl ow could be achieved around all equipment, and an equipment access door was also installed. “The primary users are small companies seeking to manufacture batteries and take technologies into the gigascale factories,” says Professor John Irvine from the University of St Andrews. “Whilst lithium is very good, there isn’t enough lithium to meet our needs. New chemistries like sodium-ion technology, which produce a lower cost and a more sustainable type of battery, are needed.” The university is also working with a range of companies on various lithium battery technologies. When working with any of these chemistries, having extremely dry conditions within the manufactured cell is critical to prevent product loss and damage.


Design and sustainability “The dry room at St Andrew University has been designed


with a key focus on sustainability,” says Jason Bettles, business development manager at Munters. The Munters DSS 1300 that has been installed is equipped with the Munters Green Power Purge heat recovery system, which reduces the reactivation heater power by approximately 30%. In addition to this, there is a complimentary water chiller that serves the dehumidifi cation system and is fi tted with heat recovery. “This enables us to utilise waste heat to provide post-heating for the dehumidifi cation process.”


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