Thakoorden, Renesh RMabeo, Reuben THlalele, Thabo G2026-03-112026-03-112025-10http://hdl.handle.net/10204/14751This paper presents an experimental investigation into the impact of Battery Management System (BMS) design on the performance and reliability of Lithium-Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) batteries. The original objective of this study was to determine the State-of-Health (SoH) of three commercially available LiFePO4 batteries under a selected test protocol. The experimental results showed that the integrated BMSs in all three tested brands exhibited erratic and unpredictable behaviour in their charge and discharge current limits. The initial hypothesis was that the behaviour is directly linked to the overall battery temperature due to the heating during charging and discharging however, no discernible relationship could be determined. Tne observation was the premature shutdown of the batteries as depicted by the sharp current drops. The BMSs shutdown and disconnected the battery from the test equipment thereby ceasing the test. The tests were restarted and the data stitched together to be able to conduct an analysis. This highlights a flaw in the design or implementation of these “off-the-shelf” BMSs, as they limit the optimal operation of these batteries. This study demonstrates that improperly designed and implemented Battery Management Systems can affect battery performance. While the original scope of the tests was to determine SoH, the observed BMS behaviour prevented this assessment, shifting the focus to the critical impact of these design deficiencies.FulltextenBattery Management SystemLithium-ionBattery performanceBattery reliabilityConference PresentationN/A