Lead-acid cells performance

Based on the experimental results presented in Fig. 4.25, it can be concluded that antimony incorporated in the CL will improve the electrical and mechanical contact between the CL and the PAM, and eventually enhance the energetic performance of the lead—acid cell. 

The above investigations indicate that the physical and chemical properties of the lead oxide used as precursor material for the production of battery plates, though the lead oxide is only a starting compound for a number of chemical processes (paste preparation and plate formation, whereby Pb02 and Pb are formed), exert an influence on the energetic and capacity performance parameters of lead-acid cells and batteries. Hence, it is essential to produce leady oxides with optimum and stable physico-chemical properties which would guarantee high battery performance. 

When the positive plates limit the performance of a lead—acid cell (battery), the above characteristics depend on the processes that take place ... 

The potentials of the two electrodes of the lead—acid cell are measured vs. a reference electrode. Thus, the lead—acid cell turns into a three-electrode cell. During measuring the potential of the two electrodes of the LA cell, the reference electrode should not be polarized, i.e. its potential should remain constant. The most common reference electrodes are hydrogen, cadmium, mercury-mercurous sulfate and silver-silver sulfate electrodes. Cadmium sticks are widely used in industrial quality control laboratories to measure the electrode potentials of the manufactured batteries. Cadmium does not form poorly soluble cadmium sulfate, which is the reason why during the measurement the electrolyte in the cell absorbs a few Cd ion impurities that do not affect the performance of the battery, however. 

All AGM batteries boast some significant performance enhancements over traditional flooded lead-acid cells. 

Nguyen, T. V., White, R. E., and Gu, H. (1990). The effects of separator design on the discharge performance of a starved lead-acid cell. 

Of the conventional secondary systems, the nickel-iron and the vented pocket-type nickel-cadmium batteries are best with regard to cycle life and total lifetime. The nickel-hydrogen battery developed mainly for aerospace applications, has demonstrated very long cycle life under shallow depth of discharge. The lead-acid batteries do not match the performance of the best alkaline batteries. The pasted cells have the shortest life of the lead-acid cells the best cycle life is obtained with the tubular design, and the Plante design has the best lifetime. 

Monobloc batteries, using the cylindrical cell, are produced with two to six cells interconnected in a single plastic container. These 4-, 6-, and 12-V batteries have performance characteristics similar to those of the single cell. The monobloc design is illustrated in Fig. 24.3. A newer type of small cylindrical lead-acid cell made within film electrodes has been introduced. This design has been characterized by Atwater et al. for use in portable electronic and communication applications. 

Very little work (relative to research of electrode materials and electrolytes) is directed toward characterizing and developing new separators. Similarly, not much attention has been given to separators in publications reviewing batteries.A number of reviews on the on cell fabrication, their performance, and application in real life have appeared in recent years, but none have discussed separators in detail. Recently a few reviews have been published in both English and Japanese which discuss different types of separators for various batteries. A detailed review of lead-acid and lithium-ion (li-ion) battery separators was published by Boehnstedt and Spot-nitz, respectively, in the Handbook of Battery Materials. Earlier Kinoshita et al. had done a survey of different types of membranes/separators used in different electrochemical systems, including batteries."... 

Nickel-cadmium batteries with thin sintered plates are used for on-board power supplies in aircraft, helicopters, tanks and military vehicles where their excellent low temperature, high rate performance is an important attribute. Modern 40 Ah cells designed for airborne use can deliver 20 kW of instantaneous power at 25°C and over 10 kW at —30DC. Again, the high cost of this system compared with that of lead-acid batteries has restricted its use. 

Figures 30 and 31 refer to the excellent performance of this battery type (see Figure 31, high cell voltage of 3 V, ten times better mass-related energy content than for the lead-acid accumulator) such cells have not been commercialized up to now. This is not because of the problems to maintain the temperature—this is achieved by the waste heat—it is because the danger of crack formation and resulting catastrophic local chemical reactions that led to the fact that investigations with respect to electrotraction have been essentially abandoned.

Strong contenders for automotive power are the sodium/sulphur and sodium/ nickel chloride batteries, the latter known as the ZEBRA cell. ZEBRA was originally (c. 1979) an acronym devised for commercial security reasons but now it stands for the very apt Zero Emissions Batteries Research Activity . Several European car manufacturers including BMW and Mercedes have incorporated the ZEBRA cell into prototype cars, vans and buses. The performance of the battery far outstrips that of the lead/acid counterpart, as is evident from Fig. 

Most battery systems employ carbon materials in one form or another, as noted in Table 10.1. The use of carbon materials in batteries stretches across a wide spectrum of battery technologies. The variety of carbon runs the gamut from bituminous materials, used to seal carbon-zinc and carbon black powders in lead acid batteries, to high performance synthetic graphites, used as active materials in lithium-ion cells. The largest use is as a conductive diluent to enhance the performance of cathode materials. In many instances, it is used as a conductive diluent for poorly conducting cathode materials where carbon blacks, such as acetylene black, are preferred. It is essential that... 

The theoretical specific energy for this battery is 2600 Wh/kg and the cell voltage is 2.2 V at 375°C [360-364]. A comparison between the performance of this battery and that of the lead acid battery (Pb/H2S04/Pb02) is given in Figure 36 [365],... 

Current collector — In the battery discipline, a good electron conductor support designed to transfer electrons from the external circuit to the active materials of the cell. Current collectors are usually metal foils or nets that are inert under the operational chemical and electrochemical conditions. In some cases carbon cloth is also used. In secondary - lead-acid batteries the chemical nature of the current collectors (plates, grids) is particularly imperative, as it influences the self-discharge and the performance under overcharge and discharge conditions. Frequently, current collectors have also the important role of imparting mechanical stability to the electrodes. 

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