Cold Weather and High Drain cells

So I read somewhere that using a high drain cell like a Samsung Q30 actually does much better than a normal cell like a Sanyo NCR18650GA when it's cold out. Is this actually true and is it true for all high drain batteries when compares to normal drain?

Cold weather increases the internal resistance of batteries, resulting in greater voltage sag at the same load. High-drain cells have lower internal resistance to start with, so it takes a greater increase before the battery starts to have trouble with a given load.

The best performing Li-ions in extreme cold are those specifically designed for that purpose like the Panasonic NCR18650F. I haven’t seen anybody selling bare NCR18650Fs in single quantities, but Nitecore and Evva sell wrapped protected versions.

Is this Klarus you think using the same cell?

See 18650 & 21700 battery internal resistance cold testing for some results in cold weather for high drain batteries. The Nitecore didn’t did as well as expected on HKJ’s tests, so maybe one of the high drain batteries is better after all, the Molicel P26A and P28A particularly have a –40C min operating temperature, the P26A being easily available. I haven’t seen independent testing of it under low temperature, but if its datasheet is to be trusted it should work well.

I’d like to see more testing like this. HKJ’s test was colder than maukka’s, so the two can’t be compared directly.

I covered some aspects of this in a blog post on the website recently, but ill list a few bits here;

Cells being sold a “cold weather” or “low temperature” - If you look at the factory datasheet (in the rare instance they have/will supply one) for the majority of cells used under the wraps of the most common torch battery brands, you’ll find that most have an operating temperature range of down to around –20’C, some as low as –30’C making this a rather pointless selling point…

…unless…

These manufacturers can demonstrate by way of computerised battery analysis in a generated environment (IE, inside an environmental testing chamber) that the cells are demonstrably better than “X” competitor at a given temperature. For example, putting a Samsung INR18650-30Q derived product up against a Sony US18650VTC6 derived one. Both 3000mAh, run them flat out at 15A @ –20’C, track and plot the internal impedance on a graph and see which provides the best in terms of capacity. From my research, no-one is doing this, or at least not providing data to back their claims.

For most cells, the “ideal” discharge temperature is around 25’C and being able to keep to this is the best way to minimise fluctuations in internal impedance and therefore keep the cell as efficient as possible in terms of expending its energy well, and consistently. When i say “well”, i mean, getting the full (or as close to) the full capacity from them.

My dog walking lately has been right at the edge of the operating temperature range (near –20C). My 30Q in a C8 has mostly stayed inside a pocket. However I sure see the effects of the cold on the LADA 2450 exposed to the cold on my forehead. After about a half hour walk a fresh good battery will no longer go into turbo at all, high is diminished and it has even dropped out of regulation when trying to reach high — including giving the low voltage warning. After a few minutes indoors, and a power reset to get past the low voltage protection, performance returned to normal.

Not sure how much different the NiMh cells are than the Li-ion but my experience tells me that they definitely have increased internal resistance and voltage sag when they get cold!

Its certainly more pronounced in NiMH cells than Li-ion, but the effects are there the same.

It might also be down the cells themselves. The Ikea LADDA cells aren’t known for being the_ strongest_ of things. Perhaps give some Eneloop Pro AA cells a go, you should see a marked performance improvement :slight_smile:

Yes, it's true. Non high-drain LiIons are only good to about 0°C whereas high drain cells work pretty well down to about -20°C.

I once wrote a post on CPF that might be of interest:

I’ve copied it near-verbatim below, with updated links and related text.

——

An interesting question, but not an easy one to answer, I’m afraid. As Chris says, data are thin on the ground.

However, I can give you an idea of what to look for, if you can track down the data sheets for whichever cells you’re interested in.

As examples, here are some data sheets with graphs showing discharge characteristics at various temperatures for three well known Panasonic 18650 cells:

Note that the datasheets are hosted by third parties, not Panasonic directly, because getting them from Panasonic is a pain in the butt and they keep deleting things or moving them around.

Look at the lower left of the page for the -A and -B datasheets, or page 3 of the -GA datasheet. Unfortunately, the -GA graph only covers –10°C to 25°C, where the other two cover –20°C to 40°C. Don’t ask me what Panasonic were thinking there!

You’ll notice that at the lowest temperatures, the cells have trouble getting started, because the cold slows down the electrochemical reactions so much. There’s a large voltage drop at first, followed by a substantial recovery as the cells warm up due to power dissipated via internal resistance.

At –20°C, the -A cell drops to ~2.8V at first, so it has significantly more trouble than the -B cell, which only drops to ~3V. Given a choice between the two, you’d want the -B cell.

At –10°C, the -A cell drops to ~3.4V, the -B cell drops to ~3.5V, and the -GA cell drops to ~3.35V. The -GA cell is actually the poorest performer, which could be very significant, especially if those relative standings carry through to –20°C.

This is why it’s so important to keep lights and cells as close to your body as possible until you use them. Nice and warm inside your jacket is vastly better than frozen in your car’s glove box or at the bottom of your pack. You’ll also want spare lights and cells; that’s practically mandatory in extreme environments.

Another thing to bear in mind is that the cell voltage at low temperatures will only recover if you’re drawing enough current to dissipate significant power via internal resistance. If you’re running your light on a low mode, it may never heat up enough to recover.

I have no idea what capacity you’ll get out of the cell then, because the data sheets don’t cover that case. Those low temperature discharge tests are all performed at substantial currents.

You can also encounter other nasty problems. For example, if you have a light that cuts out at 2.9V to protect the cell from over-discharge, it wouldn’t even turn on using a -A cell at –20°C, because the cell would drop straight down to ~2.8V. This also applies to protected cells, although protection circuits often tolerate lower voltages before they cut off.

You’d also be pushing your luck even with the -B cell. If the temperature dropped just a little further, or the cell happened to be getting a bit old, you wouldn’t be getting any light that way either.

Although I normally like protected cells and lights with cell protection built in, this scenario is one where I’d seriously consider choosing unprotected cells and lights that drain them to the dregs. Of course, the trade off is that you then become solely responsible for maintaining Li-Ion cell safety.

As ever, it’s always a good idea to test the performance of your equipment in safe conditions before you rely on it. Hint: a good household freezer should hit –18°C :slight_smile:

On the subject of deciding between 18650 cells and RCR123 / 16340 cells, the first thing I’d say is that Chris is right: 16340s will cost you a lot of capacity, especially in an extremely cold environment. If you still want a two-cell approach, consider 18350s instead. You’ll still lose a lot of capacity compared to the 18650, but it won’t be quite as bad.

The one place a two-cell approach might pay off is if you want to use the light on a low mode where the cell won’t generate enough internal heat to recover a decent working voltage. The extra voltage from two cells might be the difference between a light that works and a light that doesn’t.

Again, this is something you would need to test for yourself.

Whichever way you jump, you’d definitely want to carry some primary cells - CR123As - as your last-ditch backup if your light supports them.

The Samsung 20S might be the best 18650 cell at extremely low temperatures (under -20 C). It has the highest current rating of all 18650s (30A). Because of its low capacity (2Ah) this effect would only be visible at very extreme temperatures though.

Where do you live to have minis 40

I thought it would be good to revive the topic since winter is going to cover north hemisphere soon… :wink: :cold_face:

Has anything changed during last 3 years?
I can remember there are special batteries for palette carts to be used in professional freezing chambers (gel?). Is there any invention in Li-ion technology allowing them to resist low temperatures significantly better?

The question is driven by the fact I used to store a flashlight in my car. It’s a long exposure to range of -10 : +10 and I know standard ones tend to loose capacity quickly in these conditions.

If there haven’t been any break thru on the market, which would you recommend most for long&cold storage today?

Don’t think it was touched on, but I wonder if maximising the size of cell(s) you’re willing to use will help- for a given output a larger cell will see less current draw compared to it’s size.

For an extreme example, a 3x21700 light with cells in parallel might have 15,600mAh capacity. A 1A draw should be easy even at low temperatures.

A 14500 light has 1000mAh capacity, a 1A draw is much “harder” at low temperature for this cell.

Your question is not unusual, but I still have to find a source of information that has all the answers.
Some people compare A to B, others C to D, or B to D. There is no single source that combines it all.
But in general you can say that batteries that contain lithium are better suited for cold environments.

Ballpark impression: lithium primaries are holding on to their capacity the best.
So if you wanna keep a light in your car in chilly Poland, choose a light that can handle (2pc) CR123A batteries.
And when spring comes, swap them for an 18650. But then again, I’m no expert.

Tkank you Henk for the input. Those CR123 are extremaly rare at my place. And not sure of any improvement over Molicell P26A.

Seems to be the hunger for cold resistant cells on the market. Even found some scientific artile here

I have a couple of the Fenix cold resistant 2900 mAh cells that I got in 2019. They’re rated to -30C, but I haven’t really had a good chance to test them much because our winters around here have been fairly mild the last couple years.

Reading the older posts above, someone mentioned that NiMH cells don’t do well in cold weather. For some reason, I had been thinking that they weren’t drastically affected in the cold. What is the general consensus on the NiMH performance in cold weather? I have some NiMH C and D Low Self Drain cells in Maglites that I keep as spares in my vehicles. They always come on, but I don’t use them for extended periods of time.

How cold is cold? For some it’s -30C, others, -5C.

I’m not sure I fully understand the effects, but it seems like moderate low temperature affects output and runtime, I think you have to get extremely cold for the output to stop completely.

That said, if the performance is affecte to the extent the brightness/runtime of the light doesn’t do what you need, then yes it’s a problem.

The thing I read about NiMH was that their staying power in cold weater was inferior to NiCad batteries.
But per January 1st 1997 importing those is no longer allowed in the EU.

OP never specified how cold is cold. There is cold as in 40 degrees F and there is cold as in 5 degrees F. Totally different cold levels.