Oct 27, 2021 Pageview:3668
A battery is a container that consists of either one or more cells in which electrical energy is stored as chemical energy and later is converted into electrical energy when needed. There are two main types of batteries; rechargeable and non-rechargeable. Non-rechargeable batteries are batteries that cannot be charged when the power in them is used up. Rechargeable batteries are batteries that can be charged over and over again when the electrical power in them is used up. Battery charging enables you to keep your battery with power so that whenever you need power, you can have it. Currently, there are wide appliances of batteries and with advancements in technology, batteries are now being made with the ability to store more charge and for longer.
Charging is a crucial process in ensuring that batteries have power and so it is important for you to understand the charging process in detail. When charging batteries, there are concepts, laws, and ways in which the charging process should be done for it to be effective. Here is what you need to know about battery charging.
Battery Charging Law Definition
The basic law of charge is that like charges repel while unlike charges attract. This is the law of charge and it’s by the principle of this law that batteries charge. When batteries are being charged, it is the flow of electrons that is utilized to ensure that batteries charge as required. During the charging of the battery, an external source of direct current is connected to the battery. The negative terminal (anode) of the battery is connected to the negative terminal of the external source of direct current and the positive terminal of the source of direct current is connected to the positive terminal (cathode) of the battery.
As a result of the power from the external source of direct current, electrons are injected into the anode of the battery. This process causes a reduction reaction that happens in the anode rather than the cathode. As a result of this reaction, the anode of the battery regains the electrons that were previously used up and therefore it regains its original state when it had power. Generally, it is this reaction that causes the battery to be charged. In electricity, we have two types of charge and they are the anions and cations. This is where the law of charge now applies. The anions are attracted to the anode, while the cations are attracted to the cathode. This attraction of charge is what happens within the battery when it is charging. An anion is positively charged and is attracted to the anode during the process of charging while a cation is a negatively charged ion and is attracted to the cathode during the charging process.
During the charging process, the battery gains charge because the positive terminal of the external source of direct current attracts the negative cations. As a result, there is oxidation at the cathode which makes it gain its original charged state, and hence the battery is thus charged.
Battery Surface Charge Definition
In simple terms, surface charge is the situation where your battery reads more voltage than its actual voltage. As a result of the elevated voltage, your battery reads a false voltage. Battery surface charge happens mainly on lead-acid batteries. This happens because lead-acid batteries are slow at converting lead sulfate to lead and lead dioxide during the charging process. As a result of this delayed action, most of the charging activity happens on the surface of the plates which results in the state of charge (SoC) increasing on the outside.
Battery surface charge will eventually normalize and to make it happen, just switch on the electrical loads and reduce the battery capacity by just one percent and leave the battery to rest. Within the time of rest, the battery will by itself get back to its right state of voltage. Battery surface charge occurs mainly in batteries that have been charged using a battery charger or those from vehicles that have just been driven. Those voltage readings that are more than the actual voltage readings are what result in battery surface charge and the solution to it to just let the battery rest for 12-24 hours so that the surface charge can eventually dissipate.
You need to know that battery surface charge is a normal occurrence and when it happens you only have to give the battery time to get to its normal voltage.
Battery Trickle Charge Definition
Trickle charging is the process of charging a battery that is already fully charged. This happens at a rate equal to the self-discharging rate of the battery which helps the battery remain fully charged at all times. This situation occurs exclusively when the battery is not loaded because trickle charging will not keep a battery fully charged if its charge is being consumed by a load.
Trickle chargers are very useful especially in situations where you have an old car, the battery is weak or old as well as in cases where you need peace of mind with the assurance that your battery is fully charged at all times. Trickle chargers work by releasing little amounts of current into the battery to match the self-discharge of the battery and hence keep it fully charged at all times.
Trickle charging is important because it keeps the battery from draining, which assures you that you will get a better service from the battery because whenever you need it, it will be fully charged which will increase its efficiency and convenience. Trickle charging is especially useful because it keeps the battery safe from the destructive process of sulfation
Rechargeable batteries have been of great use and they have proved to be very effective especially for use in cars, generators as well as for the operation of electronic systems. When you understand the charging process well you stand a better chance of maintaining your battery well as well as knowing what is good and bad for it. As a result, you will get better and more efficient services from the battery.
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