Battery Energy Storage Systems

Battery energy storage systems (BESS) are going in across Western Australia, from mine site microgrids and remote communities to commercial buildings and utility-scale sites. Under normal charging and under fault conditions, batteries can release hydrogen. It has no colour, no smell and ignites easily, so the only way to know it is building up is to measure it.

Hinco Instruments supplies the gas detection, battery testing and environmental monitoring instruments used in battery rooms and BESS enclosures, and calibrates them in our Canning Vale workshop or on site. We serve customers across Australia from our Perth, WA base.

Where the hydrogen comes from

Lead-acid and nickel batteries give off hydrogen as a normal part of charging, and much more when they are overcharged or a charger fails. This is why battery rooms have always needed ventilation.

Lithium-ion batteries do not gas in normal use, but when a cell is damaged, overheated or overcharged, it vents a mix of gases that includes hydrogen. That venting often comes before thermal runaway, so detecting it early gives you time to isolate the system before a fire starts.

Why it is dangerous

What good hydrogen monitoring looks like

Fixed detectors at high points. Detectors go where hydrogen collects: at ceiling level above the batteries, near the top of each enclosure and close to exhaust points.

Alarms well below the LEL. Alarm levels are set as a percentage of the LEL, with a low alarm that raises the warning early and a high alarm that triggers action. The exact set points come from your site’s risk assessment and the system designer.

Alarms that do something. Detectors connect to a gas controller that can start extra ventilation, stop charging, isolate the batteries and alert people on site or remotely.

Portable detectors for people. Technicians entering a battery room or opening an enclosure should carry a portable gas detector, even when fixed detection is installed.

The batteries themselves. Regular battery resistance and insulation testing picks up failing cells and wiring faults before they start to gas, and temperature monitoring in the room catches the conditions that age batteries early.

In Australia, AS/NZS 5139 covers the installation of battery systems and AS 2676 covers battery room ventilation and housing, and NFPA 855 is widely referenced for larger systems. Your system designer will confirm which apply to your installation.

Instruments we supply for battery energy storage

Gas detection, controllers, battery testers and room monitoring. Ask us about hydrogen sensor options for each detector.

Shop by range: Gas Detectors, Test and Measurement, Major Tech, HIOKI, Vaisala and Crowcon.

Common questions about BESS gas detection

Do lithium-ion battery systems need hydrogen detection?

Lithium-ion cells do not gas in normal use, but a cell that is failing vents hydrogen and other flammable gases, often before thermal runaway. Detecting that off-gassing early is why many designers fit gas detection to lithium-ion systems. Your design standard and risk assessment decide what is required.

Where should hydrogen detectors be mounted?

High up. Hydrogen is much lighter than air, so detectors go at ceiling level above the batteries, near the top of each enclosure and close to exhaust points, not at breathing height.

How often should the detectors be calibrated?

Follow the manufacturer’s interval, which for most fixed gas detectors is at least every six months, with bump tests in between to prove they respond. See gas detector calibration.

Keeping detection reliable

A gas detector that has drifted still shows a reading, so a battery room can look safe when it is not. Detectors need regular bump testing to prove they respond, and calibration against certified gas to prove the reading is right.

We provide gas detector calibration for portable and fixed detectors, electrical test equipment calibration for your battery and insulation testers, and on-site calibration for fixed systems anywhere in WA.

BESS projects often sit alongside mine site microgrids, oil and gas facilities and government and utility infrastructure, and many data centres run large UPS battery rooms. See all the industries we serve, or call 08 9455 6777.