Hybrid Capacitors Provide Long-lasting Energy to LED Lights
By Harvey Wilkinson, VP of marketing and product development at Ioxus, Inc.
Light emitting diodes (LEDs) provide long-life lighting technology that powers flashlights, street signs and medical devices. LEDs have bright output with low input power, making them much more energy efficient than their incandescent predecessors. Hybrid capacitors, a combination of an ultracapacitor and a lithium-ion battery, are an ideal choice for LEDs because the low energy and power of LEDs allows hybrid capacitors to be a longer term energy source than alternative energy storage solutions on the market. Other benefits of LEDs to lighting include little to no required maintenance.
Hybrid capacitors offer an enhanced capability of energy storage in LEDs because they have an energy density up to 115 percent higher than standard electric double-layer capacitors (ELDCs). This allows for faster and more efficient power to applications such as LED lights used in medical devices. Compared with a nickel cadmium or lithium-ion battery, hybrid capacitors provide more than 20 times the cycle life and 60 times faster recharge rates, vastly improving LED lighting products for a variety of industries.
An LED device is brighter, lasts much longer and consumes less than one-third the power and energy of comparable halogen products. Device manufacturers can now design hybrid capacitors permanently into devices because capacitor cycle life generally matches or exceeds device life. Because LEDs use so little energy, hybrid capacitors can provide power for an extended amount of time, saving not only time, but also maintenance costs. For example, medical devices using hybrid capacitors to power the LED lights can charge in 60 seconds and last all day. The hybrid capacitor can last in the device for more than ten years, which often is longer than the device’s lifespan.
As LEDs are more widely adopted, we can expect to see an increase in hybrid capacitors being used to power the lights.
Harvey Wilkinson is the vice president of marketing and product development at Ioxus. He is responsible for marketing, new product development and exploring new business opportunities.
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How do these things work in hand cranked flashlights? I have several dead ones that use NiMH batteries that die (and can’t be recharged) because of 1. Self-discharge, 2. Long shelf storage between uses, 3. Infrequent use and partial charge.
These might be a great alternative, if they deliver better performance than NiMH batteries.
Hello,
A hybrid capacitor could work for this application. But, due to ESR that is higher than an ultracapacitor, an ultracapacitor would actually be a better fit for a hand-crank application.
There are several hand-crank lights using ultracapacitors in the market today. The ultracapacitor offers the following advantages over batteries for this type of product:
– Low temperature performance down to -40°C
– High cycle life
– No lower voltage limit (can be stored for years and still work)
– Ability to accept charge from 0V
– Lightweight
I’m happy to discuss more: chall@ioxus.com.
Best regards,
Chad Hall
Ioxus, Inc.