Lead-carbon energy storage provider Axion Power International has teamed up with the Tennessee office of France-based Schneider Electric and Chattanooga, TN-based Tennessee Solar Solutions to install an off-grid energy system, utilizing solar panels, battery storage and power electronics, to power a mobile sustainability lab developed by Urban Green Lab, a Nashville area non-profit group, as an educational platform to bring green education workshops to area schools, businesses and other public events on topics such as renewable energy and other sustainability initiatives.
The LED lighting, heating and cooling, and touch screen displays derive power from a system utilizing a rooftop solar array consisting of panels supplied by Nashville-based Light Wave Solar and installed by Tennessee Solar Solutions, Axion's proprietary lead-carbon batteries for energy storage and power electronics from Schneider. The Axion PbC® batteries store energy in a lead carbon battery bank for periods when there is not sufficient solar based energy to power the electrical demand. The Schneider electronics integrate the solar panels with the PbC® batteries allowing for flexible operation and seamless power production. The PbC® batteries provide long lasting, fast charging, efficient and relatively maintenance free energy storage. The PbC® batteries are almost 100% recyclable, adding to the sustainability of the system.
Axion Power Chief Executive Officer, Richard Bogan said, "We will use the experience of being a new addition to the Urban Green Lab's Mobile Sustainability Lab team, which has been in the making for two years, to further demonstrate uses for our technology. The Lab debuted in February and has already been used as a platform for green technology education in workshops at schools, businesses and public events in the Nashville area."