How To Choose Energy Storage Battery Connectors?

With the ever-expanding market demand for connectors, a wide variety of connectors are constantly emerging, with the most common types including high-current connectors, energy storage equipment connectors, and energy storage battery connectors. Generally, the basic performance of connectors can be divided into three categories: mechanical performance, electrical performance, and environmental performance.

1. Mechanical Performance: In terms of connection function, insertion and extraction force is an important mechanical performance.

Insertion and extraction force are divided into insertion force and extraction force, and the requirements for both are different. Relevant standards specify the maximum insertion force and minimum separation force, indicating that the insertion force should be small, while if the separation force is too small, it will affect the reliability of the contact.

The insertion and extraction force and mechanical life of energy storage connector are related to the plating quality of the contact parts and the dimensional accuracy of the contact arrangement.

2. Electrical Performance: The main electrical performance of connectors includes contact resistance, insulation resistance, and dielectric strength.

① Contact Resistance: High-quality electrical connectors should have low and stable contact resistance. The contact resistance of connectors ranges from a few milliohms to tens of milliohms.

② Insulation Resistance: This is an indicator of the insulation performance between the connector contacts and between the contacts and the housing. Its magnitude ranges from hundreds of megaohms to thousands of megaohms.

③ Dielectric Strength: Also known as withstand voltage or dielectric withstand voltage, it characterizes the ability of the connector contacts or between the contacts and the housing to withstand the rated test voltage.

3. Environmental Performance: Common environmental performance includes temperature resistance, humidity resistance, vibration, and shock resistance.

① Temperature Resistance: Currently, the highest operating temperature for connectors is 200℃, and the lowest temperature is -20℃. Because current generates heat at the contact points during connector operation, causing a temperature rise, the operating temperature is generally considered to be the sum of the ambient temperature and the contact point temperature rise. Some specifications explicitly stipulate the maximum allowable temperature rise for connectors under the rated operating current.

② Humidity Resistance: The intrusion of moisture can affect the insulation performance of the connection and corrode metal parts.

③ Salt Spray Resistance: When connectors operate in an environment containing moisture and salt, electrochemical corrosion may occur on the metal structural parts and the surface treatment layer of the contacts, affecting the physical and electrical performance of the connector. ④ Vibration and Shock: Vibration and shock resistance are important performance characteristics of electrical connectors, and they are crucial indicators for testing the robustness of the connector's mechanical structure and the reliability of its electrical contacts. These are clearly specified in relevant test methods. Shock tests should specify the peak acceleration and the duration of any interruption in electrical continuity.

⑤ Other Environmental Performance: Depending on the application requirements, other environmental performance characteristics of electrical connectors may include sealing performance and low-pressure resistance.