The project ‘Metrology for Static and Dynamic Characterization of

Supercapacitors’ – MetSuperCap
M. Zucca1, N. Al-Zubaidi-R-Smith2, L. Bartova3, H. van den Brom4, L. Callegaro1, A. Cultrera1, L. Fast5,
B. Grandinetti 6, M. Hassanzadeh1, 7, A. Mariscotti8, A. Masouras9, S. Musumeci7, G. Nicol10,
2024 Conference on Precision Electromagnetic Measurements (CPEM) | 979-8-3503-6104-9/24/$31.00 ©2024 IEEE | DOI: 10.1109/CPEM61406.2024.10646148

M. Ouameur11, G. Rietveld12
1
INRIM- Istituto Nazionale di Ricerca Metrologica,Turin, Italy ([email protected])
2
Keysight Technologies GmbH, Linz, Austria, 3CMI - Cesky Metrologicky Institut, Brno, Czech Republic
4
VSL B.V., Delft, Netherlands, 5RISE - Research Institutes of Sweden AB, Borås, Sweden
6
Novac Srl, Modena, Italy, 7Politecnico di Torino, Dipartimento Energia, Turin, Italy
8
Università di Genova, Genova, Italy, 9Pleione Energy GmbH, Stuhr, Germany
10
Centro Ricerche Fiat S.C.p.A., Turin, Italy, 11LNE – Lab. National de Métrologie et d'Essais, Paris,
France, 12Universiteit Twente, Enschede, Netherlands

Abstract — Supercapacitors (SCs) represent an environmentally means and methods for accurate characterization of SCs and
friendly technology, that can replace batteries or work with them banks.
in high power density applications. To support the increasing use
of SCs, accurate characterization is required under operating The implementation of SCs into applications asks for reliable
conditions. In addition, validated circuital and software models tools for the accurate determination of a multiparametric
are needed to identify the SCs behavior in dynamic applications. equivalent circuit model (ECM) of a SC, which is not
Along with slower but highly accurate methods, novel quick, standardized. A clear measurement and identification tool is not
traceable, and effective measurement techniques are required to within the knowhow of many companies. The same need is
evaluate SCs State of Charge (SoC) and State of Health (SoH) and
to promote the uptake of SCs in consumer electronics, energy, substantial for SC banks. A reliable and recognized tool would
transport, aerospace and in many other applications. The allow all designers to easily implement SCs into applications.
MetSuperCap project aims to improve the characterization of SCs Applications require frequent monitoring of the SoH and SoC
by providing an accurate identification of their parameters in the of the supercapacitive components to provide correct feedback
laboratory and under operational conditions. to the users and to have a good scheduled maintenance.
Index Terms —Batteries, characterization, energy storage, Therefore, developing rapid and reliable measurement and
measurement, measurement techniques, supercapacitors.
diagnosis methods is of great interest for many applications. In
specific applications for example, the coexistence of batteries
I. INTRODUCTION and SCs may lead to particularly complex Charge Management
Systems (CMS), which are still a subject of research. New
The life cycle of SCs is very long (up to a hundred times
models and methods developed for SCs must also be validated
longer than batteries), and their charging and discharging limits
in the presence of distorted waveforms (low power quality).
are not critical, unlike for batteries. The SCs work in a wide
Finally, it should be noted that almost all the studies, standards,
temperature range and do not suffer from the harsh
and guidelines mainly concern Electric Double Layer
temperatures of winter. They also pose zero thermal runaway
Capacitors (EDLC), while hybrid SCs and pseudo-SCs, which
risk. They are environmentally friendly as they do not contain
are relatively new devices entering the market, must be already
heavy metals. These devices are earning their significance in
considered in perspective, and dedicated guidelines should be
several applications. Therefore, the development and uptake of
developed for them.
SCs has huge market potential, and long-term progress is
needed for their successful advancement and
commercialization. Meanwhile, SCs are also facing technical II. OVERALL OBJECTIVES
challenges such as establishing electrical parameter models,
The overall objective of the MetSuperCap project is to
achieving consistency in testing, and establishing industrial
support the development of SCs and banks by defining the
standards [1]. Overcoming these technical problems will
accurate assessment of their parameters, including the ECM
promote the use of this eco-friendly technology and reducing
parameters, via new traceable measurement methods and
the dependence on batteries.
validated software. In addition, the project aims to provide
SCs metrics are only partially defined by manufacturer
rapid techniques for the assessment of the SoC and SoH of SCs
guidelines and standards. Moreover, these metrics presently
and the validation of such techniques in real applications.
lack accuracy analysis, and above all, lack standards for SC
The specific objectives of the project are:
banks. A step forward thus could be tracing guidelines for the

979-8-3503-6104-9/24/$31.00 ©2024 IEEE

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 1. To develop metrologically traceable methods, monitoring. Rapid methods are not common but are of great
including the assessment of uncertainty, for characterizing applicative interest. Indeed, the determination of the
capacitance, resistance, specific power, and energy for SCs of SoC/SoH requires the use of complex techniques or the use of
different sizes (from 1 farad up to 1000s of farads, for discharge complex algorithms combined with the device's ECM.
currents up to 500 A). The developed methods should be • The use of SCs in conjunction with batteries provides
suitable for the characterization of SC banks with maximum undoubted advantages in terms of absorption and return of
instantaneous discharge power up to 25 kW. power peaks which, managed by SCs, improve efficiency,
2. To create software/models for identifying relevant and extend the life of the batteries. There is great interest and
parameters for the static and dynamic characterization of SC research in particular for electric vehicles (EVs). This type of
and SC bank models. The target error of the developed use requires the development of hybrid charge control
software/models will be lower than 5 % (for voltages greater systems, which are beyond the state of the art and go beyond
than 200 mV). In addition, to define optimized voltage/current a common battery management system.
waveforms, based on representative SC charging and The project intends to achieve the expected objectives in a span
discharging cycles, for characterizing SCs and for validating of 36 months (1st June 2024 – 31 May 2027). The challenge is
models by measurements. tackled in a holistic approach provided by the collaboration of
3. To devise rapid techniques, including the uncertainty 12 partners from 9 European countries.
assessment, for accurately measuring the SoC and SoH of SCs.
4. To verify the results for SCs in real conditions by
designing and producing two test benches fitted with a
measurement system and a measurement procedure to evaluate
the actual behavior of SCs under operating conditions,
including battery-SC hybrid systems. The test bench will also
be used for the validation of the outputs of Objectives 1-3 and
for the evaluation of at least two applications of SCs in energy
systems, (e.g., photovoltaics (PV), electric vehicles (EVs)).
5. To facilitate the take up of the technology and
measurement infrastructure developed in the project by the
measurement supply chain, standards developing organizations
and end users (e.g., metrology networks, the aerospace,
automotive and energy sectors).

III. THE PROJECT APPROACH

A. Project organization Fig. 1. Project organization scheme.
The project is organized into 3 technical work packages
(WPs), plus one for impact and one for coordination, as ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
summarized in Fig. 1. The three technical WPs address the 4
technical objectives specified in Sect. II, going beyond the state The 23IND04 MetSuperCap Project has received funding
of the art, as specified below. from the European Partnership on Metrology, co-financed from
the European Union’s Horizon Europe Research and
B. Planned advancements Innovation Programme and by the Participating States.
• The approach suggested by some standards (e.g. [2], [3]) is
sometimes relaxed in terms of accuracy of the SC parameters REFERENCES
determination. A guide that provides a clear relationship
[1] S.Huang, X. Zhu, S. Sarkar, and Y. Zhao, “Challenges and
between the instrumentation, the measurement method and opportunities for SCs”, APL Materials, 7, 100901; 2019
the expected uncertainty on the SC parameters would be very [2] EN 62391-2:2006: “Fixed electric double-layer capacitors for use
useful in this area. in electronic equipment - Part 2: Sectional specfication - Electric
• Multiple approaches for modelling SCs have been presented double layer capacitors for power application”, CEN-CENELEC
in the literature [4]. The ECM models are promising due to B-1040 Brussels.
[3] EN IEC 62576:2018: “Electric double-layer capacitors for use in
their strong application value, as they allow the equivalent hybrid electric vehicles - Test methods for electrical
circuit of the SC to be implemented into complex control characteristics”, CEN-CENELE,C B-1040 Brussels.
systems which can include charge control and the load. [4] M. Zucca, M. Hassanzadeh, O. Conti and U. Pogliano, "Accurate
• The determination of SoC and SoH allows systems to increase Parameters Identification of a Supercapacitor Three-Branch
reliability, predictive maintenance, and real time condition Model," in IEEE Access, vol. 11, pp. 122387-122398, 2023,

Authorized licensed use limited to: Badan Riset Dan Inovasi Nasional. Downloaded on December 16,2024 at 09:05:36 UTC from IEEE Xplore. Restrictions apply.