FAILURES OF LEAD ACID BATTERIES

47. FAILURES OF LEAD ACID BATTERIES

In this chapter we learn

Reliability with reference to durability of batteries.

Routine checks when batteries are replaced.

General measures for prolonging the life of batteries.

Operating practices for prolonging the life of batteries.

Maintenance practices for prolonging the life of batteries.

Case studies involving other causes of battery failures.

47.1. Introduction

Failures of lead acid batteries are often treated as durability problems since these batteries have a limited life of three
to five years. If the battery requires replacement after two years, the action taken is, merely to replace the battery. It is
not easy to determine the true causes of such premature failures and the maintenance staff have many other
problems to deal with.

Lead acid batteries are expensive items and it is possible to get improved life by taking a few simple precautions.
While those directly connected with maintenance may not be motivated to investigate each premature replacement,
it is desirable for higher management in large organisations to monitor the ages of batteries being replaced. The
management should establish norms based on service conditions and organise routine studies on all batteries, which
have to be replaced prematurely.

In this chapter we will discuss the practical measures taken to prolong the life of lead acid batteries and the checks
made as a routine for replacements.

47.2. Routine Checks When Lead Acid Batteries are Replaced

a. The number of years and months service rendered by the battery before replacement should be determined from
the records. It is better also to mark indelibly on the battery container itself, the date of its commissioning, so that
the ages of batteries being replaced can be seen instantly. This is an obvious and essential step but it is often
neglected.

b. If the age is less than the established norm, the following checks should be made immediately.

The electrolyte level in each cell should be measured.

 The cells should be topped up to the correct level.

24 hours later, the battery should be charged fully and specific gravity in each cell should be carefully measured.

The voltage of each cell should be checked first on open circuit and then again while delivering amperes equal to
one tenth of the Ampere-hour capacity.

Samples of electrolyte should be analysed for the impurity levels.

If there are any dead cells or open circuit cells they should be opened out carefully to determine by visual
examination the causes of such defects.

The quantity of sludge collected at the bottom of each cell should be measured.

c. It is usually possible to determine the cause of premature replacement of the battery on the basis of the above
preliminary checks. Batteries that require premature replacement should be sent back from time to time to the
manufacturers for their analysis and comments.

The effort involved in such analysis is very small when compared with the possible savings in battery replacement
costs.

47.3. Measures for Prolonging the Life of Lead Acid Batteries

The life of lead acid batteries depends on the quality of the design and manufacture, i.e. the make or brand of the
battery. It is desirable always to compare the life obtained with different makes under similar conditions of service
and quality of maintenance. For this purpose, a register should be maintained indicating the make and type of
battery, date of commissioning, dates of topping up with distilled water, quantity of distilled water added, dates of
equalising charge, and finally date of replacement. It is even more desirable to continue the same register to indicate
the routine measurements and observations on prematurely replaced batteries as suggested in Section 47.2 above.

The above details may be maintained in cards. These data are very useful, if reviewed periodically, for:

a. comparing the durability of different makes.

b. detecting any defects in maintenance practices.

c. taking steps for prolonging the life of the batteries.

The durability data of different brands should be taken into account while determining the distribution of orders to
the suppliers. The order should be divided between the top two or three makes classified according to average life
obtained. The effects of this policy on quality of supplies received are very slow but they have long-term benefits.

The life of lead acid batteries is greatly influenced by the temperature of the battery electrolyte. The higher this
temperature, the lower is the life. It has been estimated that the life of the battery is reduced by half for every 8 °C
increase in the operating temperature of the battery. This is a manifestation of Arrhenius' Law applicable to all
chemical reactions. After all, the operation of the battery, either in the charge mode or in the discharge mode,
involves a chemical reaction between the electrolyte and the materials used in the construction of the positive and
the negative plates. Even the 'local action' that takes place, when the battery is neither under charge nor under
discharge and which is responsible for the degradation of the battery involves chemical reactions. Therefore it is
advisable to reduce the operating temperature of the battery to as low a level as practicable.

In any given installation, the electrolyte temperature depends on (a) the ambient temperature; (b) the dissipation of
heat from the battery to the surroundings; (c) the charging and discharging rates.
The ambient temperature here is the temperature of the air surrounding the battery. This may be a little higher than
the general atmospheric temperature if the batteries are housed in closed boxes. The battery boxes should provide for
the free convection of air. This factor is connected with the design and installation of the battery.

The fastest returns on action taken are in regard to operation and maintenance practices. These are discussed in the
next section.

47.4. Operating Practices for Prolonging the Life of Lead Acid Batteries

As far as operation is concerned the only control which the maintenance organisation has is on the charging current.
The charging equipment should be suitable for automatic regulation of the charging current. It should be so
regulated that it is never too high but every cell gets fully charged. Excessive charging not only increases the average
temperature of the battery but also increases the consumption of distilled water and plate degradation. If the battery
is on float charge the best way is to provide regulated constant voltage at the battery charger terminals.

The discharge current depends on the load requirements and is generally beyond the control of the maintenance
organisation.

47.5. Maintenance Practices for Prolonging the Life of Lead Acid Batteries

The most important part of battery maintenance is the electrolyte level and its quality.

The electrolyte level should be maintained within the prescribed limits as far as practicable and never allowed to go
below the top level of the plates. The level should be constantly monitored and distilled water added as needed to
bring the level back to the maximum limit. The design of the battery box, accessibility of the cell tops, and the
equipment for checking electrolyte levels and refilling of distilled water are very important. If these are unsatisfactory,
maintenance is likely to deteriorate.

As far as quality is concerned, it is necessary to verify by periodic random checks at the point where batteries are
topped up, that the samples of water taken have the required purity. This should be verified by actual chemical
analysis. The impurity levels should not exceed the limits specified in the standards for battery topping-up water.
Such checks must also be made according to approved sampling procedures at the point where supplies are received.

Copper, iron and chlorides are some of the impurities that are very harmful and these are also around in different
forms in any industrial environment. Care must be taken to ensure that they do not find their way into the battery
electrolytes. In railway batteries, brake block dust can be a source for iron entry into the cells. Analysis of the
electrolyte from the cells of batteries that are prematurely replaced is important for checking on the possibility of
such impurities being the cause of premature failure.

47.6. Lead Acid Battery Failures due to Other Causes

 CASE STUDIES
The following list of battery failures due to causes other than impure top-up water and high operating temperature
are taken from many case studies. Many of these causes are trivial but true. It is necessary to take special steps to
train the staff to avoid them.

A locomotive battery, provided for starting the main diesel engine, was found to be totally discharged when
required. It was not a true battery failure as it was caused by a defect in the battery charger. There was a delay in
starting the locomotive.
The battery charging circuit must include a charge/discharge ammeter which should be verified by the driver
from time to time to ensure that the battery is being charged when the locomotive is in service.

A similar case occurred in an electric locomotive where the battery is required for raising the pantograph and
for the starting contactor of the 1-phase to 3-phase Arno convertor. The battery got discharged because certain
lights were not switched off before the locomotive was stabled. This case is also not a true battery failure. There
was a delay in starting the locomotive.

The battery seemed to be 'dead' when trying to start the locomotive. This was due to a bad contact between the
positive terminal post and the connector clamp. The clamp faces were touching each other instead of having a
clearance. See Figure 47.1. The contact pressure between the terminal post and the clamp was totally
inadequate. Bad contact is also possible due to 'creep' of the lead pillar.

Figure 47.1. Shows how trivial defect in clamp causes failure of main contact

In another case, the battery seemed to be 'dead' and investigation showed that the entire electrolyte had
drained away from a leaky cell. The cause of this leakage was a crack in the cell container and obviously a
manufacturing defect.

In yet another similar case, the cause of a 'dead' cell was a fracture inside the cell between the terminal post and
the horizontal paralleling strap supporting the positive plates. This was also a manufacturing defect—a defect in
the lead burning process. The only way to prevent such failures due to manufacturing defects of this type is to
involve the manufacturers in the effort by imposing penalties for such failures. It is not practicable to detect
such defects at the inspection stage during purchase.

47.7. Battery Charger Defects

Many battery failures are caused by battery charger defects that remain undetected until it is too late. In un-attended
substations and switching stations, protective relays should be provided to detect drop in battery specific gravity of a
pilot cell and to send an alarm signal to the control centre.

As regards battery charger failures are concerned, it may be recalled that these are generally due to failures of
components such as capacitors, resistors, terminals, fuses, solenoids, relays, etc. These failures have been discussed
in detail in Chapters 32 to 65.
47.8. Do's and Don'ts for Preventing Battery Failures

Buy batteries from approved suppliers and maintain records of life obtained from each battery.

Open out all dead cells to determine the true cause of the defect. Where manufacturing defects are found return
the cells to the manufacturer for free replacement.

Take special steps to ensure quality of distilled water used for topping up. Ensure that adequate supplies are
stocked at the maintenance depots. Ensure that electrolyte levels in all cells are kept within limits.

Monitor the specific gravity of electrolyte of pilot cells and cell voltage on all cells during periodical maintenance.

Investigate quality of water drawn from cells that have had to be replaced prematurely, on the lines indicated in
Section 47.2 (b).

Take steps to keep the battery temperature as low as possible while undergoing charge/discharge cycles in service
by controlling the charging rates and providing adequate ventilation.

Ensure that the battery chargers are reliable and that they are designed to regulate the charging current suitably.

Citation
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A. A. Hattangadi: Failure Prevention of Plant and Machinery. FAILURES OF LEAD ACID BATTERIES, Chapter
(McGraw-Hill Professional, 2004), AccessEngineering

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