Lead-acid batteries applications

In 1899, Waldmar Jungner (Sweden) invented the nickel-cadmium battery (Ni/Cd) [6]. The battery used nickel for the cathode, cadmium for the anode, and an aqueous solution of potassium hydroxide for the electrolyte. The applications of these batteries were limited because of the high cost of the materials compared to other battery systems (lead acid). In 1901, Edison (USA) modified the design of the battery by replacing the anode material with iron [7]. This design is known as the... 

VRLA as a soft hybrid battery. Flooded lead-acid batteries have a number of strong points that favour use in soft hybrids such as robustness, a large thermal mass, and a conductive medium to remove the heat. Flooded lead-acid batteries are not considered contenders for soft hybrid applications, however, for the several reasons outlined below. 

Their unusual structural and electronic properties make the carbon nanostructures applicable in, inter alia, the electrode materials of EDLCs and batteries. Activated carbon nanofibers are expected to be more useful than spherical activated carbon in allowing the relationship between pore structure and electrochemical properties to be investigated to prepare the polarizable electrodes for experimental EDLCs, EDLCs are well documented to exhibit significantly higher specific powers and longer cycle lifetimes compared with those of most of rechargeable batteries, including lead acid, Ni-MH, and Li-ion batteries [20-34—45],... 

According to their application, lead—acid batteries can be classified into the following main... 

The major focus of this section has been on describing the primary energy source for transport applications. There are, however, numerous transport applications where the auxiliary power is critical. The best recognized auxiliary power application is the automobile battery. The lead-acid chemistry has dominated this... 

Lead acid battery was invented in 1859 by Gaston Plante, and has been widely used throughout the world for more than 150 years [1], At present, all automobiles are equipped with one or more lead-acid battery. As for industrial application, lead-acid batteries have served as a backup for telecommunication system, office, and medical emergency power supply equipment [2]. Those are also used as traction battery for the electric forklifts [3]. In addition, those are used for electric moped in China and Asian area in recent years. In such ways, lead-acid batteries have become an inseparable device for our life. 

For such application, it is thought that the lead-acid battery will compete with the lithium-ion battery, and lead-acid battery might be accepted from market because of its low cost and easiness to produce batteries with large capacity. 

After World War II most of the electric vehicles disappeared, and electric industrial trucks, streetcars, and boats and submarines remained the only field of application for traction batteries, mostly lead-acid batteries. England has kept about 40,000 electrically powered trucks in service to this day, mostly for service in rural areas, for milk delivery and the like. 

This chapter identifies various secondary or rechargeable batteries and their potential applications. Lead-acid batteries are considered the oldest working horse among the rechargeable batteries. Design improvements in these lead-acid batteries have... 

Lead-acid battery chemistry has been applied to a variety of capacities, sizes, and designs. Despite other battery chemistry technologies that have been marketed, lead-acid chemistry remains the technology of choice for automotive and many other applications. Lead-acid chemistry has proven to be robust, tolerant to abuse, low cost, and well understood. It is widely used in the industrial, portable, and transportation sectors. 

The need to operate electrically powered tools or devices independently of stationary power sources has led to the development of a variety of different battery systems, the preference for any particular system depending on the field of application. In the case of a occasional use, for example, for electric torches in the household or for long-term applications with low current consumption such as watches or pacemaker, primary cells (zinc-carbon, alkaline manganese, or lithium-iodide cells) are chosen. For many other applications such as notebooks, MP3-players, cellular phones, or starter batteries in cars only rechargeable battery systems, for example, lithium-ion batteries or lead-acid batteries, can be considered from the point of view of cost and the environment. 

CPs have been investigated for a very wide variety of battery applications, although mostly for secondary (rechargeable) batteries. They have been used as the anode as well as the cathode material, although cathode materials in Li secondary batteries have overwhelmingly been the main focus of interest. Applications have included all-CP (anode/cathode) batteries [685], lead-acid batteries [686], Zn batteries [687] and others. Although poly(aniline) (P(ANi)) and poly(pyrrole) (P(Py)) have overwhelmingly been the primary focus of interest, other common CPs studied have included poly(p-phenylene) (P(PP)), poly (acetylene) (P(Ac)), poly (thiophene) (P(T)). 

Standby power can be defined as a souree of electricity that becomes available when the mains source of electricity ceases to be available. The choice of a standby system lies between batteries, usually lead-acid or nickel-cadmium, and generators, or a combination of the two. For many applications, the battery s ability to provide the power required instantly makes it more suitable. Indeed, even in large installations for which a generator is essential, batteries are often used both to start the generator and to provide power for the initial period until the generator is running to speed. 

Yuasa have constructed a 400 kWh battery intended for stationary application testing. Argoime National Laboratory, US have published projected ranges and speeds for different simulated driving profiles comparing sodium-sulphur batteries with lead-acid and nickel-iron (Table 43.3). 

A more appropriate battery for transportation applications is probably a nickel-iron or nickel-metal hydride battery. These batteries are not as susceptible to heat and gassing as lead-acid batteries, so they can better withstand high current or high voltage charges that can dramatically shorten charging time. 

Lead dioxide on graphite or titanium substrates has been utilised as an anode in the production of chlorate and hypochlorites and on nickel as an anode in lead-acid primary batteries Lead dioxide on a titanium substrate has also been tested for use in the cathodic protection of heat exchangers and in seawater may be operated at current densities up to lOOOAm" . However, this anode has not gained general acceptance as a cathodic protection anode for seawater applications, since platinised Ti anodes are generally preferred. 

Small-format lead-acid batteries with immobilized electrolyte are still used in some applications such as hand lanterns. Low-cost six or twelve-volt batteries (e.g. 6 Ah size) are used in child-driven toy cars and other sizes in emergency-light or alarm systems, kept on trickle-charge. Efforts are being made to produce bipolar systems which give 30 percent improvements. 

The historical development of the separator and of the lead-acid storage battery are inseparably tied together. When referring to lead-acid batteries today one primarily thinks of starter batteries or forklift traction batteries, but the original applications were quite different. 

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