Battery Reconditioning
After looking through several youtube videos on Battery Reconditioning and reading the comments, it is questionable whether or not it is possible to recondition a battery using any method.
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=battery+reconditioning
For the most common lead acid batteries this is a question of chemistry. So, to determine whether or not it is possible to recondition a "dead" lead acid battery we must first determine how most of these batteries operate:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automotive_battery#Design
and
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automotive_battery#Use_and_maintenance
The Use and Maintenance section reads:
"Sulfation occurs when the electrodes become coated with a hard layer of lead sulfate which weakens the battery. It occurs when a battery is not fully charged and remains discharged.[20] Sulfated batteries should be charged slowly to prevent damage"
It appears that sulfation is primary cause of battery deterioration. The question then becomes how can we remove this sulfation?
This is a job for,...chemistry!
There are methods by which to remove corrosion from metal lead.
It was quite strange how I came about the answer. I performed a search for "How to clean Lead" on google and one of the links led me to a treasure hunting forum. In the forum was yet another link to an archeology conservation website:
http://nautarch.tamu.edu/CRL/conservationmanual/File14.htm
This website presents several methods by which to clean lead and other metals.
"The lead is immersed in 10 percent hydrochloric acid, which will remove any adhering marine encrustation, along with lead carbonates, lead monoxide, lead sulfide, calcium carbonate, and ferric oxide."
Hydrochloric Acid is also known as Muriatic Acid:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrochloric_acid
The Hydrochloric Acid cleansing method claims to remove Lead Sulfide:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead_sulfide
Not necessarily Lead Sulfate:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead(II)_sulfate
Though, a few paragraphs later the author(s) claim:
"If the objective is to completely remove all of the lead corrosion products from a lead object, a 5 percent solution of ethylenediaminetetraacacetic acid (EDTA) disodium salt is most effective. After complete immersion in the EDTA solution for two to three hours (up to 24 hours for large objects), the object is rinsed in tap water."
EDTA Disodium Salt is also available online:
https://www.amazon.com/Pure-Disodium-Powder-Ounces-grams/dp/B074CTMWB8
The Previous product may not be the exact form of EDTA needed to remove all corrosion from lead metal. We should instead look for actual EDTA Disodium Salt:
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/123819-REG/Photographers_Formulary_10_0490_100G_Edta_Disodium_Salt.html
Even though the author(s) don't specifically mention that Hydrochloric acid will remove Lead Sulfate, it may in fact do so.
So, this method might be worth a try.
So let's experiment. We will first drain out all sulfuric acid solution from the battery into a non-reactive container. Then fill the battery with a 10% solution of Hydrochloric acid.
10% HCl is available on the internet:
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_sacat=0&_nkw=hydrochloric+acid&_sop=15
It may be more cost effective to buy a higher concentration of HCl and then dilute it to 10% using distilled water.
After a couple of hours, drain the HCl from the battery, fill it with distilled water drain and repeat a couple of times to remove any HCl residue. Then fill it back up with the sulfuric acid solution and charge the battery.
We could also try something similar with EDTA, see if it works.
If neither HCl nor EDTA give satisfactory results one can use electrolytic reduction:
"ELECTROLYTIC REDUCTION CLEANING
The ability to control the speed of the electrolytic reaction through current controls makes electrolytic reduction especially useful for lead coins and medals or, indeed, any specimen where surface detail is important or reduction and/or consolidation of the corrosive layers is the objective. Two electrolytic reduction techniques, normal reduction (Plenderleith and Werner 1971:267-268) and consolidative reduction (Organ 1963a:131; Plenderleith and Werner 1971:268-270), are used for treating lead.
Normal Reduction
Lead artifacts with substantial metal remaining can be cleaned by the normal electrolytic reduction process using 5 percent sodium hydroxide, anodes of mild steel or stainless steel, and a current density of 2-5 amps/dm2. Very satisfactory results are achieved by this technique. However, since lead is susceptible to solvent action by the electrolyte, when it is not cathodically protected, the current must be flowing before putting the specimen in the electrolytic tank and must not be cut off while the specimen is immersed in the tank. A good electrical contact, as indicated by evolution of hydrogen from the object, must be made with the lead, and the contact should be sufficiently supported to ensure that the electrical contact is maintained."
Sodium Hydroxide can be bought online:
https://www.google.com/search?q=sodium+hydroxide&source=lnms&tbm=shop
And of course you can make your own Sodium Hydroxide using water and table salt:
https://youtu.be/S4VEZk9ccWg
This is the method used by many to clean cast iron engine blocks:
https://youtu.be/IomonJeRiXg
This entails removing the lead plates from the battery and placing them in a electrolytic reduction vessel, which may be quite a bit of work.
The method that certainly will work, (as long as there is sufficient lead metal left) is to take a sander or sand paper to the sulfated lead plates and simply grind away the lead sulfate. Though, this is may be a time consuming process.
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=battery+reconditioning
For the most common lead acid batteries this is a question of chemistry. So, to determine whether or not it is possible to recondition a "dead" lead acid battery we must first determine how most of these batteries operate:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automotive_battery#Design
and
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automotive_battery#Use_and_maintenance
The Use and Maintenance section reads:
"Sulfation occurs when the electrodes become coated with a hard layer of lead sulfate which weakens the battery. It occurs when a battery is not fully charged and remains discharged.[20] Sulfated batteries should be charged slowly to prevent damage"
It appears that sulfation is primary cause of battery deterioration. The question then becomes how can we remove this sulfation?
This is a job for,...chemistry!
There are methods by which to remove corrosion from metal lead.
It was quite strange how I came about the answer. I performed a search for "How to clean Lead" on google and one of the links led me to a treasure hunting forum. In the forum was yet another link to an archeology conservation website:
http://nautarch.tamu.edu/CRL/conservationmanual/File14.htm
This website presents several methods by which to clean lead and other metals.
"The lead is immersed in 10 percent hydrochloric acid, which will remove any adhering marine encrustation, along with lead carbonates, lead monoxide, lead sulfide, calcium carbonate, and ferric oxide."
Hydrochloric Acid is also known as Muriatic Acid:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrochloric_acid
The Hydrochloric Acid cleansing method claims to remove Lead Sulfide:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead_sulfide
Not necessarily Lead Sulfate:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead(II)_sulfate
Though, a few paragraphs later the author(s) claim:
"If the objective is to completely remove all of the lead corrosion products from a lead object, a 5 percent solution of ethylenediaminetetraacacetic acid (EDTA) disodium salt is most effective. After complete immersion in the EDTA solution for two to three hours (up to 24 hours for large objects), the object is rinsed in tap water."
EDTA Disodium Salt is also available online:
The Previous product may not be the exact form of EDTA needed to remove all corrosion from lead metal. We should instead look for actual EDTA Disodium Salt:
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/123819-REG/Photographers_Formulary_10_0490_100G_Edta_Disodium_Salt.html
Even though the author(s) don't specifically mention that Hydrochloric acid will remove Lead Sulfate, it may in fact do so.
So, this method might be worth a try.
So let's experiment. We will first drain out all sulfuric acid solution from the battery into a non-reactive container. Then fill the battery with a 10% solution of Hydrochloric acid.
10% HCl is available on the internet:
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_sacat=0&_nkw=hydrochloric+acid&_sop=15
It may be more cost effective to buy a higher concentration of HCl and then dilute it to 10% using distilled water.
After a couple of hours, drain the HCl from the battery, fill it with distilled water drain and repeat a couple of times to remove any HCl residue. Then fill it back up with the sulfuric acid solution and charge the battery.
We could also try something similar with EDTA, see if it works.
If neither HCl nor EDTA give satisfactory results one can use electrolytic reduction:
"ELECTROLYTIC REDUCTION CLEANING
The ability to control the speed of the electrolytic reaction through current controls makes electrolytic reduction especially useful for lead coins and medals or, indeed, any specimen where surface detail is important or reduction and/or consolidation of the corrosive layers is the objective. Two electrolytic reduction techniques, normal reduction (Plenderleith and Werner 1971:267-268) and consolidative reduction (Organ 1963a:131; Plenderleith and Werner 1971:268-270), are used for treating lead.
Normal Reduction
Lead artifacts with substantial metal remaining can be cleaned by the normal electrolytic reduction process using 5 percent sodium hydroxide, anodes of mild steel or stainless steel, and a current density of 2-5 amps/dm2. Very satisfactory results are achieved by this technique. However, since lead is susceptible to solvent action by the electrolyte, when it is not cathodically protected, the current must be flowing before putting the specimen in the electrolytic tank and must not be cut off while the specimen is immersed in the tank. A good electrical contact, as indicated by evolution of hydrogen from the object, must be made with the lead, and the contact should be sufficiently supported to ensure that the electrical contact is maintained."
Sodium Hydroxide can be bought online:
https://www.google.com/search?q=sodium+hydroxide&source=lnms&tbm=shop
And of course you can make your own Sodium Hydroxide using water and table salt:
https://youtu.be/S4VEZk9ccWg
This is the method used by many to clean cast iron engine blocks:
https://youtu.be/IomonJeRiXg
This entails removing the lead plates from the battery and placing them in a electrolytic reduction vessel, which may be quite a bit of work.
The method that certainly will work, (as long as there is sufficient lead metal left) is to take a sander or sand paper to the sulfated lead plates and simply grind away the lead sulfate. Though, this is may be a time consuming process.
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