Battery

A battery is a combination of two or more electrochemical

Galvanic cells which store chemical energy which can be
converted into electric potential energy i.e. electricity.
A battery is a device that converts chemical energy directly
to electrical energy.
It consists of one or more voltaic cells.
Each voltaic cell consists of two half cells connected in
series by a conductive electrolyte.
One half-cell is the negative electrode (cathode) and the
other is the positive electrode (anode).
In the redox reaction that powers the battery, reduction
occurs in the cathode, while oxidation occurs in the anode.
The electrodes do not touch each other but are electrically
connected by the electrolyte, which can be either solid or
liquid.
A voltaic cell for demonstration purposes.
In this example the two half-cells are
linked by a salt bridge separator that
permits the transfer of ions, but not water
molecules.
How batteries work :

Cont..

Each half cell has an electromotive force (emf), determined
by its ability to drive electric current from the interior to the
exterior of the cell.
The nett emf of the battery is the difference between the
emf,s of its half-cells, as first recognized by Volta a reknown
scientist.
Thus, if the electrodes have emf,s and then the nett emf
is, in other words, the nett emf is the difference between
the reduction potentials of the half-reactions.
In many cells, the materials are enclosed in a container with
a separator, which is porous to the electrolyte and prevents
the electrodes from coming into contact.

Conti
The electrical potential difference across the terminals of a
battery is known as terminal voltage and is measured in volts.
The terminal voltage of a battery that is neither charging nor
discharging is called the open-circuit voltage and equals the
emf of the battery.
Because of internal resistance, the terminal voltage of a
discharging battery is smaller in magnitude than the open-
circuit voltage and the terminal voltage of a battery that is in
charging action exceeds the open-circuit voltage.
An ideal battery has negligible internal resistance, so it would
maintain a constant terminal voltage until exhausted and then
dropping to zero.
If such a battery maintains 1.5 volts and stores a charge of
one Coulomb then it would perform 1.5 Joule of work.
In practical batteries, the internal resistance will increase as it
is discharged, and the open circuit voltage will also decrease
as the cell is discharged.


Conti

If the voltage and resistance are plotted against time, the
resulting graphs will typically not be a straight line, and the
shape of the curve will vary with the chemical and the internal
arrangement employed.
The voltage developed across a cell terminals depends on the
chemicals used in it and their respective concentrations.
For example, alkaline and carbon-zinc cells both measure
approximately 1.5 volts, due to the energy release of the
associated chemical reactions.
Because of the high electrochemical potential changes in the
reactions of lithium compounds, lithium cells can provide as
much as 3 volts or more.

Battery capacity and discharging

The more electrolyte and electrode material is there in the
cell, the greater the capacity of the cell.
Thus a small cell has less capacity than a larger cell, given
the same chemistry (e.g. alkaline cells), though they develop
the same open-circuit voltage.
Because of the chemical reactions within the cells, the
capacity of a battery depends on the discharge conditions
such as the magnitude of the current, the duration of the
current, the allowable terminal voltage of the battery,
temperature and other factors.
The available capacity of a battery depends upon the rate at
which it is discharged. If a battery is discharged relatively at
a high rate, the available capacity will be lower than
expected.
The battery capacity that a battery manufacturers print on a
battery, is the product of 20 hours multiplied by the
maximum constant current that a new battery can supply for
20 hours at 68 F (20 C), down to a predetermined terminal
voltage per cell.
A battery rated at 100 Ah will deliver 5 A over 20 hour period
at room temperature.
However, if it is discharged at 50 A, it will run out of charge
before the 2 hours as theoretically expected.
For this reason, a battery capacity rating is always related to
an expected discharge duration.

Where

Q is the battery capacity (typically given in mAh).
I is the current drawn from battery (mA).
t is the amount of time (in hours) that a battery can
sustain

The relationship between current, discharge time, and capacity
for a lead acid battery is expressed by Peukert's law.
Theoretically, a battery should provide the same amount of
energy regardless of the discharge rate, but in real, batteries
internal energy losses causes the efficiency of a battery at a
different discharge rates.
When discharging at low rate, the battery's energy is delivered
more efficiently than at higher discharge rates.
In general, the higher the ampere-hour rating, the longer the
battery will last for a particular load.
Installing batteries with different Ah ratings will not affect the
operation of a device rated for a specific voltage unless the
load limits of the battery are exceeded.
Theoretically, a battery would operate at its Ah rating, but
realistically, high-drain loads like digital cameras can result in
lower actual energy, most notably for alkaline batteries.
For example, a battery rated at 2000 mAh may not sustain a
current of 1 A for the full two hours.
VRLA BATTERY
VRLA stands for valve regulated lead acid and is the designation
for low maintenance lead-acid batteries, also called recombinant
batteries. VRLA batteries are commonly further classified as:
Absorbent glass mat battery
Gel battery


VRLA (valve regulated lead acid)
BATTERY
Manufactured in multi-cell blocks (called modules).
The cases are often made of ABS plastic material that do not
permit visual inspection of plates/ electrolyte levels.
The hydrogen & oxygen are not expelled but recombined.
Cells are sealed & require no water addition and specific
gravity readings.
These cells are typically lead calcium pasted-plate type cells
with the electrolyte retained in gel fiberglass mats.
These cells are not flooded & dont effectively dissipate heat.
Maintaining the cells as close as possible to 77F is imperative.
Dont allow sunlight or other heat sources to rise the temp. of
individual cells.

Conti
These batteries are normally used for emergency lighting,
telecommunication & other uninterrupted power supply service.
VRLA modules/ cells are typically shipped fully charged & dont
require initial charge.
Guidelines for maintenance of batteries

The points to be observed during the inspections are
summarized as below-

General conditions of battery room and cells

Specific gravity of electrolyte in the cells

Charging current

Cell voltage

Condition of the plates and extent of deposits

Inter-cell connectors and main battery terminals

Specific gravity

Specific gravity is related to electrolyte temperature.
Should be maintained at about 1.210 at 27 degree C & when it
drops to 1.150 the cell may be considered as discharged.
Temperature correction hydrometer readings of specific gravity
shall be made as follows-

a). For each 1 degree C above 27 degree C add 0.007 to the
observed readings
b). For 1 degree C below 27 degree C deduct 0.007 from the
observed readings.

Pilot cells

One of the cells in each row of the battery set should be
selected and kept as the pilot cell.
Readings should be taken on these cells at a sufficient
frequency to indicate its state of discharge and charge and
serve as a guide to the condition of other cells.
The height of electrolyte should invariably be kept at a fixed
point above top of plates by adding distilled water every
fortnight, if necessary.
Trickle charging

A long life for battery is achievable if the battery is kept
floating on a battery charger so that the terminal voltage of
each cell is maintained close to 2.15 v
This can be achieved if the battery is kept on a very low rate
of charge, say 1 mA per Ah capacity of the battery.
The exact rate of charge should be fixed having regard to
normal and intermittent rates of discharge over a period of 24
hours, so that the battery is always kept in fully charged
condition and never overcharged or over-discharged.
Cell voltage
The voltage of cell at the end of charging is not fixed value
but will vary depending on the age of battery.
No cells should ever be discharged below the point where the
cell voltage reaches 1.85 V as measured when the cell is
discharged at normal 10 hour rate.
Sulphated plates, lug corrosion, partial short circuit due to
cracked separators & other defects of cell causes a noticeable
drop in terminal voltage with current flowing in the cell.
This drop varies with amount of current flowing and in order
to get voltages that can be compared from month to month,
the voltages should be taken with same current flowing in the
cell.
The cell testing voltmeters in use should be periodically
checked and recalibrated, if necessary. When not in use they
should be kept in safe place.
Condition of plates & deposits
Examine carefully the physical condition of the plates such as
cracks, distortions, accumulation of whitish deposits etc.
In healthy cells, deposit is brown in color but excessive
shedding of active material on positive plates indicates over
charging of battery. If this is noticed, reduce the charging rate
immediately.
If all cells shows whitish deposits immediate action should be
taken to give a boost charge at an appropriate rate & then to
increase the trickle charging rate sufficiently to keep the
battery in healthy condition at all time.
Weak cell should be immediately examined for any possible
short circuit or metallic contact between positive & negative
plates.
The short circuit should be removed and the cell should then
be given special additional charging by cutting it out and
putting it back again when a healthy condition is regained,
after it is attended to.
Inter-cell connections
The inter-cell connectors of the battery should be examined to
ensure that they are clean & tight, making perfect contact with
cell lugs and there is no corrosion taking place.
Light vaiseline should be applied to prevent corrosion.
Inspection of copper inter-row connectors should also be made
for any signs of copper sulphate corrosion which should be
cleaned up.
Acid proof paint or enamel should be applied to all exposed
copper work in the battery room & any flaking of paint work
be given prompt attention.
Maintenance New Battery Shift Monthly 3-Month 6-Month Annual
Visual
Inspection
General
Inspection

Battery Float
Voltage
Panel Meter
Float
Voltage
Battery Float
Voltage with
Digital Voltmeter

Cell Float
Voltage
All Cells with
Digital
Voltmeter
Pilot Cells with
Digital Voltmeter
All Cells with
Digital
Voltmeter

Temperature
Readings
All Cells All Cells
Connection
Resistance
All
Connections
25 Percent
of All
Connections
All
Connections
Internal
Resistance
All Cells All Cells
Battery Testing Acceptance
Capacity
Testing
Capacity Test
6 months if
1-year test
<90 percent

Safety
Equipment
Wash Equipment
Protective
Clothing Fire
Extinguisher, etc.

UPS System
UPS (Uninterrupted power supply)
Also known as a continuous power supply
(CPS) or a battery backup is a device which
maintains a continuous supply of electric power to
the connected equipment by supplying power from a
separate source when utility power is not available.

There are 3 distinct UPS systems:-

(a) off-line
(b) Line-interactive
(c) On-line


Common power problems
There are various common power problems that UPS units are
used to correct. They are as follows:
Power failure
Voltage sag
Voltage spike
Under-voltage
Over-voltage
Line noise
Frequency variation
Switching transient
Harmonic distortion

(a) Off-line UPS
Offline / standby UPS. Typical protection time: 0 - 20 minutes. Capacity
expansion: Usually not available
Off-line UPS:-

Remains idle until a power failure occurs, and then
switches from utility power to its own power source, almost
instantaneously.
An on-line uses are double conversion method of
accepting AC input, rectifying to DC for passing through
battery, then inverting back to AC for powering the
protected equipment.
when the incoming utility voltage falls below a
predetermined level the UPS turns on its internal DC-AC
inverter circuitry, which is powered from an internal storage
battery. The standby system then mechanically switches
the connected equipment on to its DC-AC inverter out of
power. The switchover time can be as long as 25 ms.
Depending on the amount of time it takes the standby UPS
to detect the lost utility voltage.

(b) Line-interactive
Line-Interactive UPS. Typical protection time: 5 - 30 minutes. Capacity expansion:
Several hours
Line-interactive type:

A line-interactive UPS maintains the inverter in line &
redirects the batterys DC current path from the normal
charging mode to supplying current when power is lost.
The line-interactive UPS is similar in operation to a
standby UPS, but with the addition of a multi-tap variable-
voltage autotransformer. This is a special type of electrical
transformer that can add or subtract powered coils of wire,
thereby increasing or decreasing the magnetic field & the out
put voltage of the transformer.
This type of UPS is able to tolerate continuous under
voltage brownouts & over voltage surges without consuming
the limited reverse battery power.
(c)Double conversion / on-line UPS
Double conversion / online:

The On-line UPS is ideal for environments where electrical
isolation is necessary for equipment that is very sensitive to
power fluctuations.
It is called a Double-Conversion UPS due to the rectifier
directly driving the inverter, even when powered from normal
AC current.
In an On-line UPS, the batteries are always connected to
the inverter, so that no power transfer switches are necessary.
When power loss occurs, the rectifier simply drops out of the
circuit & the batteries keep the power steady & unchanged.
When power is restored, the rectifier resumes carrying most of
the load & begins charging batteries, through the charging
current may be limited to prevent the high-power rectifier
from overheating the batteries & boiling off the electrolyte.
The main advantage to the on-line UPS is its ability to
provide an electrical firewall b/w the incoming utility power &
sensitive electronic equipment.
UPS System Maintenance
Periodic maintenance is extremely important to UPS
systems, as its reliability is crucial for the reliability
of the system it is supporting.
The small periodic time investment to check
batteries, connections, fans, relays and sensors is
well spent compared to damage or lost data and
broken hardware after a power disturbance reveals
a dead UPS system.
Records indicates that a properly maintained battery
backup system will last an average of five years.
Some units may fail because of lack of battery
maintenance, blocked air filters and fan failures.
Poor battery connections, dirt and dust within the
unit also cause of premature failure and unexpected
added expenses.

The single most expensive scheduled item on a UPS
(other than initial purchase) is battery replacement.

UPSs can be equipped with maintenance-free
capacitors to extend service life.