In the current state-of-art of lead-acid battery manufacture two different types of separators are used made of absorbent glass mat (AGM) and polyethylene (PE) materials. The present study compares the influence of commercially available PE and AGM separators on the charge/discharge performance of the negative plates in a lead acid battery.
Lead acid batteries pose the following challenges to a separator. Both anode and cathode are subject to shape change and possible embrittlement, so the separator must be compliant enough to accommodate this type of change while also preventing material crossover.
Lead acid battery separator materials have progressed significantly over the history of this workhorse chemistry and is a good indicator of the arrow of progress of the entire field. The first lead acid separators were natural rubbers that had moderate porosity (∼55–65 %) with more sizes on the order of 1–10 μm.
As a result separators were no longer the age-limiting mechanisms for lead acid batteries, and conductivity effectively doubled again. Polyethylene systems improved the overall porosity to levels previously realized by natural rubber systems while maintaining the mechanical advantages of PVC.
Separators play a key role in all batteries. Battery separators are complex multi-component membranes with high porosity (55-95%). In the current state-of-art of lead-acid battery manufacture two different types of separators are used made of absorbent glass mat (AGM) and polyethylene (PE) materials.
This study involved the preparation of lead oxide paste for use in the production of lead-acid batteries. The paste was applied to the positive plates, and its performance effects were tested on the battery. Morphological and surface area analyses were conducted using SEM and BET, respectively, after the performance tests.