Johnny, Some have done this, but the Li+ cells are prone to catch fire, so it's risky. SLA is well understood and less risky. They can catch fire when over charged, of course, but also when over-discharged.
Some people are reporting the A123-manufactured Lithium Nano-Phosphate cells are safer than the Li+ and LiPoly. They don't catch fire when over-discharged, for example. Unfortunately, they don't quite fit in the K2 battery case, at least now in a way I can figure. There are also non-A123 brand LiFePO4 cells which you should be able to get in HK easily. These are 3.4v and a better fit (4*3.4=13.6, max 14.4v) for 12v radio electronics than the ~16VDC full charge of Li+. They are thought to be safer than the Li+ cells, but the no-name brands don't necessarily have the same testing as A123 brand, so again it's more of a risk than SLA, though less of a risk than Li+. LiFePO4/A123 have excellent power density, and can source 60 amps easily, so they must be fused close to the pack. They don't have as good energy density as the Li+ technology, but with the K2 that's less of an issue since its RX draw is so low. Leigh/WA5ZNU > Hello Group, > > Rechargable Li-ion 3.7v cells are now very cheap ($4 for a 1,500maH cell) and > easily available in Hong Kong. I am thinking to use them to replace the > Lead Acid cell of the KBT2. This will make the K2 less heavy and give more > battery power for longer operation time. K2 will then be more suitable for > field day. > > Are there any articles in this forum covering this issue before? Or, where > can I find the necessary information for such an installation? > > Thanks and 73, > > Johnny Siu VR2XMC > > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
