Friday, Jun 25, 2010 at 11:13
Hello Ben,
that's right, heat is the number one life shortener of ANY battery.
It's not just dry out, it's the number and severity of chemical side reactions inside the battery.
Dry out can be managed by adjusting the charging voltage accordingly.
But the temperature induced side reactions and the amount of corrosion and embrittlement of the positive
grid f.e. can't be alleviated by adjusting down the charging voltage.
The only way to get a handle on these things is to take the feedstock for the side reactions out of the equation.
This is done by taking the calcium out of the
grid alloy.
You then end up having pure lead/tin which is soft and therefore unsuitable for flat plate battery design (limited mechanical support for the heavy plates).
A workaround is to make the grids very thin but long, and together with the AGM separator and the other electrode, coil it all up and stuff it into a tight fitting cell container.
The end result is a battery design with favourable chemical properties even under extended temperatures, a very large active surface area and superior mechanical rigidity.
Pure lead/tin is the battery technology of choice for demanding applications like cranking/power supplies in tanks, mining gear and the like.
Still, heat will shorten its life, but not as rapidly as a flat plate design.
I recommend to use a heat reflecting metal shield between your exhaust and the battery plus a good flow of air.
Best regards, Peter
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