GRIDCo OPERATIONS AND

MAINTENANCE FUNDAMENTAL
TRAINING PROGRAMME
PRESENTATION ON
LEAD ACID BATTERIES
P. Mensa-Barnes, Prin. Instructor, Elect Mtce
VRA Academy,
Akuse

March 2015 peter.mensah-barnes@vra.com

0200425816/0276282680

1
 LEAD ACID CELL BATTERIES
Learning Objectives
By the end of this module, the
participants will be able to :
List the basic components of a lead
acid cell.
State the chemical composition of the
plates in a charged lead acid cell and
a discharged lead acid cell.
Identify the hazards associated with
the production of gasses as lead acid
cell battery is charged.
 LEAD ACID CELL BATTERIES
Learning Objectives
State a charged lead acid cell's
approximate voltage and the factors
that determine their ampere hour
capacity.
List the six different types of charges
that can be given to a storage battery.
Describe Floating /Trickle and
Equalising charges.
State the need for giving floating and
equalising charges to storage
batteries.
 LEAD-ACID CELL BATTERY
What is a Lead-Acid Battery?
It is a storage battery composed
of a group of cells joined by inter-
cell connectors with,
Lead plates or grids,
Separators,
Dilute Sulphuric Acid electrolyte and
The Container
As the main components.
 Separators

Negative & Positive Plates and Separators of a 9 Plated Lead Acid Cell
 Separators

Partially Assembled Lead-acid Cell

 LEAD ACID CELL BATTERIES
The components accomplish
conduction of current flow between
plates to the battery terminals:
With minimum resistance and,
Provide mechanical support for the active
materials,
Two basic types of Metallic grid plates
used are:
Plante (or Formed) and
Faure (or Pasted) plates.
 LEAD ACID CELL BATTERIES
Practically, almost all lead-acid
batteries in our service and in our
cars have Pasted type plates.
The grid is of lead, alloyed with
antimony or calcium to provide the
necessary hardness and tensile
strength.
Hence, Lead Antimony or Lead
Calcium Cell Batteries
 LEAD ACID CELL BATTERIES
LA has up to 12 per cent antimony
Antimony is an impurity and has
some drawbacks, the chief being
"antimony poisoning" of the negative
plate.
This secondary reaction is more
pronounced as the battery ages.
 LEAD ACID CELL BATTERIES
Antimony Poisoning - the main cause
of increasing self-discharge.
The antimony contributes to an
earlier end of battery life, with a life
expectancy of 6-14 years depending
upon plate thickness.
Its use is because:
It is economical, being the lowest
cost battery.
Suitable for long term float charging.
LEAD ACID CELL BATTERIES

The antimony could be replaced

with calcium for additional grid
strength and a life expectancy of
25 years.
The Lead-Calcium requires
slightly different charging
voltages.
Their meaning to us:
 CHARGING OF LEAD ACID
CELL BATTERIES
The charging process begins
when the plates that are
submerged in electrolyte, are
connected to a source of direct
current.

As a lead-acid cell is charged, it

converts electrical energy to
chemical energy.
 CHARGING OF LEAD ACID
CELL BATTERIES

There are many different types of

charges that can be given to a
storage battery.

They include the following:

 CHARGING OF LEAD ACID
CELL BATTERIES
1. An Initial Charge;
2. A Freshening Charge;
3. A Normal Charge;
4. A Floating, or Trickle Charge;
5. An Equalising Charge;
6. A Fast or Emergency Charge.
Our Interest:
 BATTERY CHARGING
2. The Freshening Charge;

4. The Floating or Trickle Charge;

5. The Equalising Charge;

 BATTERY CHARGING
A Freshening Charge (In our case);
A charge given to Batteries that are
delivered with activated plates (dry-
charged or wet-charged) before being
put into service.

Charge Rate and Duration

Specified by the manufacturer in
manual and/or on the nameplate of the
battery or cell, OR until there is no
appreciable change in the battery's
state of charge.
 BATTERY CHARGING
A Freshening Charge;
Manufacturer's Recommendation
For period and Voltage
 BATTERY CHARGING
Floating/Trickle Charge;
A floating charge is a continuous
relatively low amperage (approx.
50 - 100 mA per 100 AH of battery
capacity) charge given to a
battery to maintain it at a fully
charged state at all times.
 BATTERY CHARGING
Floating/Trickle Charge;
Batteries on floating, or trickle
charge are connected in parallel with
the load to a Charger at all times.
In normal situations, charger output
is sufficient to handle the load;
battery is maintained in a fully
charged condition.
 BATTERY CHARGING
Floating/Trickle Charge voltage:
2.25 volts per cell for LC cells,

2.15 or 2.17 volts per cell for LA

cells.
 BATTERY CHARGING
Floating/Trickle Charge;
A constant trickle of current flows
through the battery to replace
unavoidable losses. For example,
a large 130-volt lead-calcium
battery may draw less than one
ampere under normal conditions.
Manufacturer's Recommendation
needed
 BATTERY CHARGING
Equalising Charge;
A charge accomplished by raising the
charger voltage to a value slightly
higher than its floating charge voltage.
Increased voltage results in higher
current through the cells.
Purpose: to drive off the small
amounts of lead sulphate that remain
even on fully charged plates, restoring
the battery to "like-new" condition.
 LEAD ACID CELL BATTERIES
Sulfation:
Sulfation refers to the process
whereby a lead-acid battery loses its
ability to hold a charge due to the
crystallization of lead sulfate on
exposed area of plates or after it is
kept in a discharged state for too
long.
 BATTERY CHARGING
Equalising Charge;
Generally performed on a periodic basis
as part of routine battery maintenance.
Occasionally, as a corrective action if
one or more cells of a battery fail to
take a full charge.
The voltage and duration of an
equalising charge depend upon the type
of battery and its service requirements.
 BATTERY CHARGING
Equalising Charge Voltage;
Between 2.33 and 2.4 volts per cell.
Slightly lower voltages may be used
according to the maximum voltage
limits of interconnected equipment.
Manufacturer's Recommendation
needed
 LEAD ACID CELL BATTERIES
Overcharging
When a lead-acid cell is fully charged,
additional current can no longer
change the chemical make up of the
plates.
Continuous charging only produces
bubbling hydrogen gas at the negative
plate and oxygen gas at the positive
plate.
This phenomenon is known as
GASSING.
 LEAD ACID CELL BATTERIES
GASSING
The bubbling up and escape of
hydrogen and oxygen gasses through
vent holes of battery cells as a result
of continued charging when the
battery is fully charged.
Has 3 undesirable effects:
1.Raising of the acidity of the
electrolyte, which could damage the
plates.
 LEAD ACID CELL BATTERIES

2. Production of a flammable gas

(hydrogen) and many other potentially
harmful gases (such as arsine).
3.If gassing is violent enough, it can
dislodge the active material from the
grid structure.
Their meaning to us Group Discussion
1.Safety issues:
 LEAD ACID CELL RATINGS

Voltage Ratings
Open circuit voltage
of approx. 2.2 volts
when fully charged.

2.2 volts approx. the

same regardless of
cell size.
 LEAD ACID CELL BATTERIES
Voltage Ratings
Both cells have a voltage of 2.2 volts,
as each is fully charged.
During discharge, this voltage
decreases.
When almost completely discharged,
voltage falls off rapidly to a value
called its final voltage.
Typical final voltage of Lead Acid
Cells is approximately 1.7 volts.
 LEAD ACID CELL RATINGS
Battery Voltage
Nominal voltage of a
lead-acid battery
depends on the number
of cells wired in series.
As seen above, each
battery cell contributes
a nominal voltage of 2
Volts, so a 6 Volt battery
usually consists of 3
cells in series.
 LEAD ACID CELL RATINGS
Battery Voltage
 LEAD ACID CELL RATINGS
Capacity Rating
Capacity measured by ability to
supply a given amount of current for
a specified period of time.
Typically measured in ampere-hours.
 LEAD ACID CELL RATINGS
Capacity Rating
The smaller cell in the figure can
supply 5 amps of current for a period
of 10 hours or 50 AH.
The larger cell can supply 20 amps of
current for 10 hours. Its ampere-hour
rating is 200AH.
Cell size has no relation to a cell's
voltage, but size affects ampere-hour
rating.
 LEAD ACID CELL RATINGS
Capacity Rating
The Amp-hour (Ah) Storage capacity is
additive when batteries are wired in
parallel but not if wired in series.
 LEAD ACID CELL RATINGS
Battery Connection

10Ah

10Ah 10Ah

10Ah
 LEAD ACID CELL RATINGS

Group Exercise A battery bank has

60 cells of 2.2V and 60Ah connected
in series. Find the total Voltage and
Capacity Ratings of the Battery Bank
ADDING VALUE TO LIVES