CHAPTER ONE: ELECTROCHEMICAL CELLS

Battery and its Types

• A storage battery is an electrochemical device that
converts chemical energy into electric energy.
The energy stored is chemical energy, which is
transformed into electric energy when a circuit is
completed across the terminals of the battery. There
are two types of batteries used to produce electric
energy: Dry cells or Primary cells
and Wet cells or Secondary cells.
 Dry cells (or) Primary cells

• The batteries which use electrolyte as paste are

called dry cells or primary cells.
• These are used in flashlights, cameras, portable
radios, etc.
• A major disadvantage of dry cells is that they
are not rechargeable. Once the chemical energy
is exhausted, the cell must be replaced.
 Wet cells (or) Secondary cells
• The batteries which use liquid electrolyte are
called wet cells or secondary cells.
• Automotive batteries are of these types.
A major advantage of wet cells is that they are
rechargeable. Discharged wet cells may be
recharged to their original state by forcing an
electric current from some other source through
the cell in the direction opposite to that of
discharge.
 Automotive Batteries
• The automotive battery produces direct current
electricity that flows in only one direction.
• When discharging (current flowing from the
battery), the battery changes chemical energy
into electrical energy. It means battery releases
stored energy.
• During charging (current flowing through the
battery from the charging system), electrical
energy is converted into chemical energy.
 Cont…
• The batteries used in automotive applications are
lead-acid battery, nickel-alkaline battery, nickel-
iron battery, nickel-cadmium battery, aluminium-
air battery, zinc-air battery, sodium-nickel
chloride battery, sodium-lithium battery and
sodium-sulphur battery.
• Although there are many types of storage
batteries, the lead-acid is most commonly used
for automotive service because it has been found
to be the most practical and economical type.
 The main functions of a battery in
automobile
• It supplies a high value of current to the starter
motor and a low value of current to the ignition
system when the engine is being started.
• It intermittently supplies current to the electrical
units (lights, radio and other electrical
accessories) when the total demand exceeds the
power output of the alternator (when the
alternator fails to supply the electrical load).
• It controls the voltage of the electrical system
 Principle & Construction of a Lead-Acid
Battery
lead-acid battery, its active ingredients are the
metal lead and sulphuric acid. The difference in
voltage between the positive plate (lead peroxide)
and the negative plate (spongy lead) is 2.13 V
when a sulphuric acid solution of 1.265 – 1.280
specific gravity is added, and the temperature is
68F - 80F.
Lead peroxide and spongy lead are used in the
automotive battery today because no other
materials have a greater voltage difference
 Cont…
• Other materials have been used and compared
with the following results:
• Lead peroxide & spongy lead 2.13 V
• Silver - Zinc : 1.40 V
• Nickel – Cadmium : 1.20 V
 Principle

• The electrolyte allows electrons to move away

from one kind of plate and build up on another.
As a result, one kind of plate will have more than
the normal number of electrons. The other plate
with fewer electrons.
 Battery Construction
• All Automotive storage batteries are similar in
construction and operation but their difference
lies in the number of cells, the arrangement of
the cells, the number of plates in each cell, the
size and thickness of the plates and the type of
separators used.
 Cells

• A battery cell basically consists of plates of two

different materials immersed in an electrolytic solution
that reacts chemically with them to produce an
electrical pressure (emf) between the plates.
• The voltage depends up on the plate materials and the
electrolyte.
 Grids & Plates
• The positive and negative plates consist of a grid
made of hard lead-antimony alloy (antimony
stiffens and adds strength to the grids), having a
large number of rectangular openings, in which
active materials are filled.
Grid serves as:
• to hold and support the active material of the plates
• to conduct the current to and from the active
materials of the positive and negative plates
• to maintain a uniform current distribution
throughout the surface area of the active materials
Cont…
 Plates & Plate Group
• The positive plates are filled with lead peroxide
active materials.
• The negative plates are filled with a porous mass
of lead, in spongy form, which the electrolyte
can penetrate freely.
 Cont…
• each cell is composed of a positive plate group
and a negative plate group.
• The negative group always contains one more
plates than the positive plate group so that there
is always a negative plate on both sides of each
positive plate.
• the chemical action is distributed evenly on
both sides of the positive plate and there is less
tend for the plate to warp.
 Separators
The functions of separators are to:
• insulate positive and negative plates from
physical contact
• acts as packaging material
 Electrolyte
• The spongy lead and lead peroxide, which fill
the respective plates, are referred to as the
active materials of the battery.
• Electrolyte is prepared by adding concentrated
sulphuric acid to water. Electrolyte is both
conductive and reactive.
• The purpose of the distilled water is to give
freedom for the ions to move freely.
 Cont…

• The amount of sulphate in the electrolyte is

determined by its specific gravity.
• Specific gravity is the ratio of the weight of a
given volume of a liquid divided by the weight
of an equal volume of water.
 Cont…
• The correct concentration of water and sulphuric
acid is usually contains about 38% sulphuric
acid and 62% water by weight (fully charged
condition). This corresponds to a specific gravity
of about 1.280 at 80F.
 Cont…
• Normally, the specific gravity of the electrolyte in
a cell is kept between 1.11 and 1.28 because
under this range specific resistance (internal loss
of current due to self-discharge) is minimum and
the voltage is nominal.
• At high specific gravity (i.e above 1.28) voltage
is more and specific resistance is also more.
• At low specific gravity (i.e below 1.11) voltage
is low however specific resistance is again too
high. That is why, specific gravity is maintained
in between 1.11 and 1.28.
the specific gravity of batteries used in different
climates

State of Specific gravity

charge
In cold In temperate In tropical
climate climate climate
Fully 1.280 1.260 1.225
charged
75% charged 1.260 1.215 1.180
50% charged 1.220 1.170 1.135
25% charged 1.190 1.120 1.090
Discharged 1.110 1.070 1.045
 Case (or) Container
• The battery case is a one-piece moulded box with
open at the top, made from hard rubber or plastic
material, which is shock & acid resistant and
mechanically strong
 Cell cover & Vent Plug
• Cell cover is also made of hard rubber. It has
holes for terminal posts and for vent plug.
• Vent plugs are provided in the cell cover
facilitate the checking of electrolyte and pouring
distilled water.
 Terminal Posts
• The battery has top mounted terminal posts. The
plate strap has a round post which projects
through a hole in the cell cover or the side of the
case and becomes cell terminal.
• The positive post is larger than the negative post
to help correct installation of the batter cables.
 Cell & Battery arrangements
• The number and dimensions of the cells depend
on the service required from the battery.
• The negative post of one the cell is connected to
the positive post of the adjacent cell (in series).
All the cells are connected in this way.
 Cont…
• Series Connection Parallel connection
Non-sealed & Maintenance Free Batteries
 Cont…
• There are two types of automotive batteries:
Maintenance free (or) sealed batteries and non
sealed batteries.
• Maintenance free batteries are sealed and never
need water. They contain a lifetime supply of
water, which is put in during manufacturing.
• The reason that the batteries do not require water
during their lifetime is that the plate grids are
made of a special lead alloy and calcium,
strontium or cadmium, which greatly reduces
gassing
 Cont…
• Sealed batteries have a much longer storage life
than non- sealed batteries. This is because
antimony used in conventional batteries is not
used in maintenance free batteries because it
increases the breakdown of water into hydrogen
and oxygen because of its low resistance to
overcharging.
• The Maintenance free batteries are also called
"low water loss" batteries.
 Cont…
• Many maintenance free batteries have a charge
indicator (built-in-hydrometer) built into the
cover.
• The indicator shows the state of charge of the
battery (actually only one cell). If the dot that is
at the bottom of the indicator is green, then the
battery is charged (more than 65% charged). If
the dot is black, the battery state of charge is low
Advantages of Maintenance Free Batteries
• Generally do not use water during normal usage.
• Reduce the corroding of battery cables,
terminals, and battery trays.
• A lead-calcium battery has a longer shelf life
than most other types of batteries
• Because of the higher internal resistance of lead-
calcium plates, a maintenance free battery resists
overcharging.
 Battery Servicing (Inspection & Testing)

• Battery tests are made to determine the state of

charge and battery capacity. Battery state of
charge is tested with a hydrometer or voltmeter
and battery capacity is determined by a high rate
discharge test.
 Inspection of electrolyte level

• The electrolyte level should be checked regularly

about every four weeks
• If the level is below the normal, it is corrected by
filling distilled water.
 Inspection of battery case for cracks
• Check the battery case for cracks or electrolyte
leakage.
• If the electrolyte is leaking from the battery case,
the battery carrier or the parts near the battery
will be corroded
 Testing of Battery
• The purpose of testing a battery is to determine
whether it:
• is in good condition
• needs recharging
• is defective and must be discarded
There are the following tests to test the battery
 Leakage Test
• The outer surface of the battery is covered with dirt,
moisture or electrolyte contaminated which result in a
discharge through battery cover surface (external
leakage).
• Battery external leakage is measured with the help of
voltmeter.
• This is executed by connecting the voltmeter positive
probe to the positive terminal post of the battery, and
slides the negative probe against the battery cover
towards the negative terminal post side. Leakage
voltage should be V  0.1 volt. If not, clean the top
cover and make again a test.
 Hydrometer (or) Specific Gravity Test

• The specific gravity is good indication of the

state of charge of the battery.
• The specific gravity reflects the percentage of
sulphuric acid present in the electrolyte. This
indicates the amount of charge still left in the
battery.
• The state of charge of a starter battery is
determined by measuring the specific gravity of
the electrolyte with the help of hydrometer
 Cont…
• The specific gravity of batteries is usually
measured at a standard temperature because the
specific gravity is affected by temperature.
 Cont…
Procedure:
• Squeeze and release the rubber bulb to draw
electrolyte into the glass tube.
• To take true reading, the eye should be level
with the surface of the electrolyte in the
hydrometer glass tube.
 Temperature Correction on Specific Gravity

• The specific gravity of an electrolyte varies by

0.0007 per 1C or 0.0004 per 1F.
• specific gravities are normally specified at 20C
(or 68F) in cold climate and 27C (or 80F) in
temperate climate, which are the approximate
standard temperature and must be converted
according to the following formula.
 Cont…
• Celsius measurement Fahrenheit measurement
S20  St  0.0007 t  20 S68  St  0.0004 t  68

Where, S20 = Specific gravity at 20C

S68 = Specific gravity at 68F
St = Measured value of the specific gravity
t = Temperature of the electrolyte when the
specific
gravity is measured
 Open Circuit Voltage Test

• Open circuit voltage test is a simple way of testing

the state of charge of a battery.
• It is measured between the terminals of the battery
using a voltmeter. During this test, no load is applied
to the battery.
• Before open circuit voltage test is executed, the
battery has to be washed and cleaned dry to eliminate
surface charge to get true reading
Surface charge may occur
• After battery has just been charging
• When the car has recently been driven (car just
comes in off the road)
 Cont…
Surface charge removal
• Turn the headlights for one minute on high
beam, then turn the lights off and wait 2 minutes
before testing.
 Peak load test

• This unit is provided with a voltmeter and has a

measuring scale of 12-0-12 volts and 6-0-6 volts.
• It is used for measuring the total battery
voltage with load applied to the battery.
 Cont…
• Green Color indicates  Good battery
condition
• Red color indicates  Weak (or) Poor
battery condition
• The test should be done within 5 to 10 seconds.
This load placed on the battery during this test
is approximately the same as that of the starter
motor.
• During peak load test, the battery should be in a
good state of charge to three fourth (3/4) or better
charged, preferably fully charged.
 Cont…
• During this test, the voltmeter reading should
not drop below 9.6 Volt
• V  9.6  battery is in good
condition
• V < 9.6  battery is defective
 Battery ratings

• The capacity or rating is a measure of the energy

stored in it and is expressed as the period during
which the battery will give the rated current
before reaching the specified final voltage.
The factors that influence battery capacity
include
• the number of plates per cell,
• the size and thickness of plates, and
• the amount and strength of electrolyte.
 Ampere-hour capacity:
• The amount of current that a battery can deliver
for 20 hours without the cell voltage dropping
below 1.75 volts (terminal voltage 10.5 volts)
with an electrolyte temperature 80F.
• For example, a battery that will continuously
deliver 3 amperes for 20 hours is rated as 60 Ah
(3 × 20) battery.
 Reserve capacity
• The reserve capacity rating is the time in minutes a
vehicle can be driven after the charging system fails.
• This is roughly equivalent to the conditions after the
alternator fails while the vehicle is being driven at
night with the head lights on.
• The battery alone must supply current to the
headlights and the ignition system.
• The assumed battery load is a constant discharge
current of 25A. It is the length of time in minute that
a fully charged battery at 80F can deliver 25
amperes without the cell voltage dropping below
1.75 volts.
 Cold cranking rate
• Large engines require that a starter motor deliver
a large amount of cranking torque.
• The greater the torque supplied by a starter
motor, the more current it draws from the battery.
As a rough guide, a starter motor requires
approximately 1A of current for each cubic inch
(in3) of engine displacement.
• Therefore, a 350 in3 engine would require a
battery with a cold cranking rating of
approximately 350 amperes.
 Battery Charging
• Charging a battery means causing electrons to
flow into the negative terminal.
• On the car, this job is performed by the
alternator. In the case of less charging or fault
in the system, it becomes necessary to recharge
the battery by means of battery chargers.
• The battery chargers are categorized as slow
charger and fast charger.
Preparing batteries for charging
• Clean and wash dirt from the battery terminals.
• Inspect the case, cell covers, sealing
compounds and vent plugs and make repairs if
damaged.
• Check the electrolyte level and fill it if
necessary
 Slow Charger
battery is removed from the vehicle and
connected to a slow charger to recharge it.
Slow chargers are usually constant current
machines which use a rectifier to convert AC to
DC and a rheostat to adjust current flow to the
battery.
Slow battery chargers operate at low rate and take
considerably longer time to charge a battery.
The charging rate is one ampere for each
positive plate in a cell.
 Boost Charging
• The fast charger can also be used to give a battery
an emergency boost when a customer is in a
hurry or in some other emergency requiring quick
service.
• The battery is charged at the normal fast charging
rate for one-third to one-half the normal charging
time.
• The battery charge current is a maximum of 80%
of the numerical value of the battery capacity.
 Over Charging
• Batteries that are completely charged need not be
charged furthermore.
• the current that is applied to charge the battery
makes electrolysis of water and the water will be
broken into oxygen (O) and hydrogen (H2)
gasses.
• Since oxygen and hydrogen are constituent parts
of water, water is rapidly lost from the battery
cells.
 The effects of overcharging
• Plates loose their ability to take charge: As a
result of water loss, the electrolyte level falls
down which makes plates exposed to air. The dry
plates get hard and loose their ability to take
charge.
• Plates deteriorate rapidly: Due to water loss, the
acid at the lower parts of plates becomes more
thick or concentrated. Due to concentrated acid
the plates deteriorate rapidly.
 Cont…
• Separators loose their insulating properties: The
upper part of the separators is also exposed to air due
to fall in electrolyte level.
• Short circuit between the plates:
• The high temperature developed in the battery cells
during overcharging cause the plates to buckle. The
buckling plates crush the separators and makes short
circuit between the positive and negative plates.
• During overcharging, some of the oxygen gathering at
the positive plates attacks the grid structure of the
plates causing them to oxidize. This result in swelling
of the plates resulting in pushing up of cell covers.
 Sulphation

• During discharging process the active materials of

the plate is converted into lead sulphate and
restored back into the active material by the
charging process.
• This is a normal cycle which is continually
repeated in the battery.
• If the Battery stands for long periods in a
discharged condition, the lead sulphate changes
into a hard crystalline substance.
• As it forms, the crystalline sulphate tends to break
the plate grids.
 Cont…
• It is very difficult to reconvert hard crystalline
lead sulphate into active materials by normal
charging process. Such a battery should be
charged at half the normal rate for 60 to 100
hours.
• Batteries that are heavily sulphated generally
cannot be restored to a serviceable condition.
 Sulphation Check

• The three-minute test is a good way to determine

if the battery is sulphated or not. A sulphated
battery will not accept a charge.
To perform the three minute test
• Charge a 12 V battery at not more than 40A
for three minutes
• If the voltmeter climbs above 15.5 V by the
end of the three minute period, the battery is
not accepting the charge and should be
replaced.
•
 Compensation Charging
• When batteries are kept in store or not used for a
long period of time with their electrolyte, they
constantly loose some of their charge due to the
chemical reaction (self-discharge).
• Their daily self-discharge rate can make upto 1%
of their capacity. The self-discharge of batteries
depends on the following factors. These are:
• Battery age
• Acid concentration
• Electrolyte temperature
 Cont…
• To over come this self discharging process,
compensation charging is executed on a very low
charging current which is about 0.1% of the value
of the normal capacity of the battery.
• If compensation charging is not possible, a
normal charging of the batteries for every one or
two months can be done.
 Battery Identification codes
• Batteries that are made in different countries have
identification codes.
• To suit an example, batteries that are made in
Japan are given a battery identification code
according to the Japan Industrial Standard
(JIS).
• The battery code indicates the battery capacity,
dimensions and the positions of the positive
terminal whether it is right or left. Some of the
battery identification codes in relation with their
battery capacity are shown in the chart
Information on Identification Code
 Cont…
– The performance of the battery indicates the
battery capacity indirectly.
– Battery width and height: In the battery width
and height combination is indicated by one of
the eight letters ‘’A’’ through ‘’H ‘’ as follows.
Code Width (mm) Height (mm)
A 162 127
B 203 127 (or) 129
C 207 135
D 204 173
E 213 176
F 213 182
G 213 222
H 220 278
• Battery length: The length of the battery is
indicated roughly in centimeter (cm) for instance
‘’23’’ in a battery indicates that the battery is 23
cm long.
• Position of the positive terminal. The position of
the positive terminal is indicated either by ‘R’
(right side) or ‘L’ (left side).
 Activating dry charged battery

• Due to self-discharge caused by the slow chemical

reaction inside the battery, the battery will keep on
discharging if kept un-used for a long time.
• When a battery is stored in a warehouse, for
example, it is kept dry. Those batteries are called
dry charged.
• battery is completely charged i.e. the plates have
been activated and this will remain as long as the
battery is not exposed to moisture. Presence of
moisture will oxidize the plates.
•
 Cont…
• A dry charged lead acid battery has spongy lead
and lead peroxide as its active materials. But
these materials cannot become active until they
are covered by a water solution of sulphuric acid
called the electrolyte.

Figure Mixing acid and distilled water

 Cont…
• Electrolyte is prepared by adding concentrated
sulphuric acid to water . Electrolyte is both
conductive and reactive.
Materials:-
-Graduated beaker
• Distilled water
• -Thermometer
• Dry charged battery
• -Sulphuric acid
• Wooden stick or glass rod for stirring
• -Wide plastic or glass material
• Make sure that the area is safe for the operation.
Don't forget to wear safety goggles.
• Looking at the battery size, make a smart guess
as to the mass or volume of the acid and water
• Add distilled water in the container
• Proportion -76% by volume or
-64% by mass
• Prepare the sulphuric acid in the graduated
beaker -24% by volume
• -36% by mass