True Blue Power, a division of Mid-Continent Instrument Co., has received FAA Technical Standard Order (TSO) C179a and European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) European Technical Standard Order (ETSO) certification of the TB17 Advanced Lithium-ion Battery.
The TB17 is the first lithium-ion engine start battery for business and commercial aviation to receive either certification, company officials said, adding customer deliveries are expected to begin in the first quarter of 2014.
Featuring A123 Systems’ Nanophosphate Lithium-ion chemistry, the TB17 is designed primarily for light turbine and piston aircraft. At 16 pounds, it offers a 45% weight savings compared to older, lead-acid and nickel-cadmium alternatives, according to company officials.
They note it is being evaluated by several airframe manufacturers for installation in a variety of aircraft.
The 17-ampere hour battery’s lithium-ion cells deliver three times the energy per kilogram when compared to lead acid. The TB17 is engineered to provide an overall lower cost of ownership with 50-75% less scheduled maintenance cost, company officials said. This is the result of increased durability, two-year maintenance intervals, efficient engine starts and gaining two to three times longer useful battery life, they explain.
The TB17 also is engineered with several layers of protection, officials add.
“It’s a smart pack,” said Rick Slater, True Blue Power Division Manager. “Safety is addressed at multiple levels including the chemistry, cell design, pack and battery system packaging, and the integration of sophisticated electronic protection systems into the battery itself. The fact that it is so lightweight and easy to maintain also makes the potential for installation of more than one TB17 battery a possibility. That provides versatility, redundancy, the possibility of distributing the battery weight evenly and adds another level of safety.”
For more information: 316-630-0101 or TrueBluePowerUSA.com