An experimental study on polymer cathode materials in lead-acid battery energy storage systems

Abstract

The replacement of lead grids with acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) polymer grids in the negative electrode of lead-acid batteries was studied experimentally, while the positive electrode remained unchanged. A polymer grid was activated by nickel plating using a chemical solution, and then coated with chrome and copper conductive plating. The polymer grid was coated with a layer of lead. Using a lead-coated polymer grid, a 30-amp 12-volt battery was produced and tested, and the results were compared with a 30-hour production line lead-acid battery. The results show that the polymer grid has a strong ability to generate an appropriate voltage in the charge and discharge cycle and create a stable capacity. The results also show the polymer grid weight has decreased significantly (about 50%) compared to the conventional lead grid. In this work, the adhesion of a negative paste to the surface of the polymer grid covered with the lead-exposed expand grid was studied, and the results show that the polymer grid can adhere to the negative dough perfectly.