Implementation of battery man-agement systems, a key component of every LIB system, could improve lead–acid battery operation, efficiency, and cycle life. Perhaps the best prospect for the unuti-lized potential of lead–acid batteries is elec-tric grid storage, for which the future market is estimated to be on the order of trillions of dollars.
Throughout the early 20th century, advancements in lead-acid battery technology continued to improve their efficiency and reliability. The addition of antimony to the lead plates increased their strength and durability, and the use of glass mat separators reduced the risk of acid leakage.
French scientist Gaston Planté created the lead-acid battery in 1859. Planté’s battery consisted of two lead plates submerged in a solution of sulfuric acid. When a current was passed through the plates, a chemical reaction occurred that produced an electrical charge.
Because such morphological evolution is integral to lead–acid battery operation, discovering its governing principles at the atomic scale may open exciting new directions in science in the areas of materials design, surface electrochemistry, high-precision synthesis, and dynamic management of energy materials at electrochemical interfaces.
In principle, lead–acid rechargeable batteries are relatively simple energy storage devices based on the lead electrodes that operate in aqueous electrolytes with sulfuric acid, while the details of the charging and discharging processes are complex and pose a number of challenges to efforts to improve their performance.
The addition of antimony to the lead plates increased their strength and durability, and the use of glass mat separators reduced the risk of acid leakage. One of the most popular kinds of portable batteries still in use today is the lead-acid battery.