Quantitative Ultrasound Spectroscopy for Screening Cylindrical Lithium‐Ion Batteries for Second‐Life Applications

Abstract

Diagnosing lithium‐ion battery degradation is a crucial part of managing energy storage systems. Recent research has explored ultrasonic testing for non‐invasive health assessment as an alternative to traditional, time‐consuming, electrical‐only methods. Assessing the state of health is vi‐ tal for determining quality at end of ‘first’ life, with retired batteries at 70−80% health still holding value for second‐ life applications. Over the coming years, tens of GWh of salvaged batteries will hit the market, requiring rapid non‐ invasive methods to classify retired batteries according to their state of health. This study uses a 64−element ultrasonic array to obtain mid‐band quantitative ultrasound spectroscopy parameters—including mid‐band fit, spectral slope, and intercept—from circumferential waves around cylindrical batteries. Thirteen cylindrical cells were used to evaluate the methodology: three pristine and ten retired from the same source. The mid‐band fit showed the ability to track the state of charge and discriminate between the state of health levels in accelerated degradation experiments both with pristine batteries, and also with recovered second‐ life batteries with unknown historical use. Linear‐array ultrasonic transducers, coupled with quantitative spectral parameters, show promise for future non‐destructive battery health screening methods, offering valuable insights for the emerging used battery market.