Battery Reconditioning 2
It is quite odd that nearly every component of modern automobiles has been disassembled and analyzed, except for lead-acid batteries. Most of the time we catch of glimpse of the innards through the vent holes.
Often a lead-acid battery is treated like a monolithic component, incapable of being disassembled, when in reality, it is just like every other component. It is made of sub-components and in the case of the battery it is quite simple.
If every component of a dead lead acid battery is reconditioned to it's original state, then both the voltage and the current will also return to it's original state.
So the first step in bringing back a battery from the dead is to clean the lead plates, as detailed in the previous post. In fact it may be beneficial to use multiple methods to clean the lead plates. First a hydrochloric acid wash, then EDTA, then electrolytic reduction.
The amount of lead making up the plates determines how well, if at all, a battery can be brought back. Clearly, if all lead plates were reconditioned then any lead-acid battery can be brought back. Not to mention, where exactly does the lead metal go? Lead is a metal and often does not escape as a gas, so most of the lead the battery ever had will remain in the battery. This lead can be collected, purified, and recast into a new lead metal plate.
Finally it isn't enough to simply clean or recondition the lead plates, the electrolyte must also be reconditioned. The electrolyte in most lead-acid batteries is composed of 35% sulfuric acid and 65% distilled water. So once the lead plates are sufficiently cleaned, new electrolyte must be added or the old electrolyte reconditioned.
Sulfuric acid is available online, with differing concentrations:
https://www.google.com/search?q=sulfuric+acid&source=lnms&tbm=shop
In order to determine how much sulfuric acid and how much water must be added, we must use some algebra. (These types of word problems arise in algebra courses when covering linear equations.)
I won't present the entire mathematical derivation, I will simply give the results: (assuming a mixture of 35% sulfuric acid and 65% distilled water)
Let
A = amount of acid solution
c = concentration of acid solution in percent
W = amount of distilled water
T = total amount of fluid required in the battery.
A = (0.35*T) / c
W = T - [(0.35*T) / c]
This will produce T amount of a 35% sulfuric acid and 65% distilled water solution.
Once you have mixed the solution, then pour it into the battery and charge the battery.
Often a lead-acid battery is treated like a monolithic component, incapable of being disassembled, when in reality, it is just like every other component. It is made of sub-components and in the case of the battery it is quite simple.
If every component of a dead lead acid battery is reconditioned to it's original state, then both the voltage and the current will also return to it's original state.
So the first step in bringing back a battery from the dead is to clean the lead plates, as detailed in the previous post. In fact it may be beneficial to use multiple methods to clean the lead plates. First a hydrochloric acid wash, then EDTA, then electrolytic reduction.
The amount of lead making up the plates determines how well, if at all, a battery can be brought back. Clearly, if all lead plates were reconditioned then any lead-acid battery can be brought back. Not to mention, where exactly does the lead metal go? Lead is a metal and often does not escape as a gas, so most of the lead the battery ever had will remain in the battery. This lead can be collected, purified, and recast into a new lead metal plate.
Finally it isn't enough to simply clean or recondition the lead plates, the electrolyte must also be reconditioned. The electrolyte in most lead-acid batteries is composed of 35% sulfuric acid and 65% distilled water. So once the lead plates are sufficiently cleaned, new electrolyte must be added or the old electrolyte reconditioned.
Sulfuric acid is available online, with differing concentrations:
https://www.google.com/search?q=sulfuric+acid&source=lnms&tbm=shop
In order to determine how much sulfuric acid and how much water must be added, we must use some algebra. (These types of word problems arise in algebra courses when covering linear equations.)
I won't present the entire mathematical derivation, I will simply give the results: (assuming a mixture of 35% sulfuric acid and 65% distilled water)
Let
A = amount of acid solution
c = concentration of acid solution in percent
W = amount of distilled water
T = total amount of fluid required in the battery.
A = (0.35*T) / c
W = T - [(0.35*T) / c]
This will produce T amount of a 35% sulfuric acid and 65% distilled water solution.
Once you have mixed the solution, then pour it into the battery and charge the battery.
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