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Project # 43
Design, Assembly, and Validation of a Lightweight Battery Pack for a Collegiate Solar Vehicle
| Team Lead: | Skyler Bryant |
| Other Team Members: | Elisa Vasquez | Charlotte Hooper | Zahiruddin Zafir |
| Faculty Advisor(s): | Greg Turner, Chris Boyer |
| Department: | EE |
| Project Type: | REU |
| Title: | Design, Assembly, and Validation of a Lightweight Battery Pack for a Collegiate Solar Vehicle |
| Abstract: | This project developed a high-voltage, lightweight lithium-ion battery pack for the UTA Blaze Raycers solar car, targeting a maximum capacity of 5.25 kWh. The work spanned pack design, cell qualification, and validation activities to support compliance with ASC/FSGP safety and performance requirements. We established a repeatable cell screening and grouping workflow and characterized each Molicel INR-21700-P50B cell using a Megger BITE 5 battery impedance tester and an XTAR VC8S analyzer. Measured values were logged and analyzed in an Excel-based evaluation spreadsheet to sort cells and form matched parallel groups. And, with using this data, we specified a 29s10p (29-series, 10-parallel) configuration totaling 290 cells, producing approximately 104.4 V nominal and 5.22 kWh of stored energy, monitored by a Prohelion Gen1 BMS with four CMUs for per-group voltage and temperature monitoring. Pack-level safety features and serviceability considerations included primary overcurrent protection, contactor/precharge sequencing, isolation/disconnect provisions, and documentation of operating procedures for competition use. |
| Poster: | View Poster #43 (PDF) |
| Judges Scoring: | Submit Evaluation (judges only) |