The march of technology has been kind to us overland travelers. We’ve absorbed technologies designed for industry and the military and adapted those to suit our needs and requirements for long-distance travel over generally rough terrain. Gone are the days of relying on underpowered, unreliable lead acid batteries, high-drain appliances, and auxiliary equipment.
Product distribution company Tiktaalik has announced the launch of the Australian LiFePO4 battery manufacturer Deep Cycle Systems for the North American Market. Deep Cycle Systems has designed and developed the very first Deep Cycle LiFePO4 Battery specifically designed for engine bay installation and vehicle starting applications. This is excellent news for us all.
Located in Mount Tamborine, Queensland, Australia, Deep Cycle Systems designs, develops, and manufactures high-quality lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4 or LFP) energy storage solutions for a wide variety of applications. Since 2015, Deep Cycle Systems has focused its product development on the needs and constraints of military, navy, and rescue applications with a custom, proprietary, and Mil-Spec (military specification) vibration-tested battery management system (BMS) that enables impressive performance benefits.
Lithium Ferrophosphate (LFP) is a flame-retardant, stable, safe, and proven cell chemistry with a very good energy density of around 325 Wh/L. This cell chemistry can be engineered for various applications by adjusting the ratio of elements to provide high-performance characteristics. For example, the DCS marine battery range runs 2C cells, which means the 75Ah battery will discharge comfortably at 75Ah x 2C = 150A. The DCS 80Ah Extreme runs 10C cells, meaning the 80A can comfortably discharge at 80Ah x 10C = 800A but is limited to lower currents due to the battery management system.
LFP also has first-rate cycling durability; between 2,000 and 12,000 cycles can be achieved depending on how well the cells are managed, and the lowest rate of capacity loss (aka greater calendar-life) compared to other lithium cell chemistries. The life span and reliability of the Deep Cycle Systems batteries justify the premium price.
Deep Cycle Systems makes the very first consumer LiFePO4 Battery that is capable of winching and bow thrusting applications, enabled by a maximum discharge current of 250 amps. Model capacity ranges from 750 – 1,400 lithium cranking amps (LCA), and Deep Cycle Systems makes the first consumer LiFePO4 Battery with an in-house engineered BMS that consistently surpasses the MIL-STD 810G (method 514.6) Vibra-on tests. The Deep Cycle Systems LiFePO4 batteries are available to order at tiktaalik.com and are estimated to ship to US customers in August. To inquire further, contact carl@tiktaalik.com
Photo Credits Carl Jonsson
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