Battery Terminology

Category Archives: Battery Terminology

Battery

An electrical battery is one or more electrochemical cells that convert stored chemical energy into electrical energy.Batteries are a common power source for many household, industrial and transportation applications.

There are two types of batteries: primary batteries (disposable batteries), which are designed to be used once and discarded, and secondary batteries (rechargeable batteries), which are designed to be recharged and used multiple times.

Rechargeable batteries are what are used in automotive and marine applications. They can be recharged by applying electric current. Devices to supply the appropriate current are engine alternators or chargers.

The most common form of rechargeable battery is the lead-acid battery. This battery is notable in that it contains a liquid in an unsealed container, requiring that the battery be kept upright and the area be well ventilated to ensure safe dispersal of the hydrogen gas produced by these batteries during overcharging.

Battery Boxes

Battery boxes are used to secure the batteries on a boat against the extreme movement of the craft on water – a marine industry standard and a Coast Guard rule.

While batteries may sometimes be mounted on trays, they are more often stored and held in marine electrical battery boxes, which, besides keeping the battery in place, also protects it from exposure to outside elements like moisture while also containing the corrosive acids of the battery.

Battery boxes also make moving and transporting the battery safe and easy. Battery boxes normally include a box with molded handles, a lid, a strap to hold down the lid and mounting hardware.

Battery boxes are available from several marine manufacturers, although the most well-known are built by Attwood Marine.

Battery Cables

Battery cables are one of the most crucial parts of any boat wiring system.

The foundation of the entire 12 volt marine electrical system is the batteries – both for energy and grounding, which are equally important. For each, the battery cable is a pivotal link.

Because of the nature of DC power and the easy potential for current loss over distance, battery cables are constructed of thick heavy duty copper and highly insulated. This makes them not only bulky, but expensive.

Good marine electrical design will use the optimal thickness (gauge) of the cables to provide the most current, while attempting to limit the distance they run, as longer runs necessitate increasing the gauge. Typically the cables will be terminated with either battery lugs (for the battery connection) or ring terminals, or most commonly a combination of the two.

Battery cables are available from many sources, although several websites now offer completely custom battery cables. The flexibility of these configurations allows boaters to get precisely the length, color, gauge and end-fittings that their boat wiring project requires.

Words of caution:

Lead-acid batteries contain a diluted sulfuric acid electrolyte, which is a highly corrosive poison and will produce flammable and toxic gasses when recharged and explode if ignited. According to PREVENT BLINDNESS AMERICA, in 2003 nearly 6,000 motorists suffered serious eye injuries from working around car batteries. The U.S. Eye Injury Registry reports that it is the third leading cause of eye injuries at home. When working with batteries, you need to wear glasses (or preferably Z-87 rated safety goggles), have plenty of ventilation, remove your jewelry, and exercise caution. Do NOT allow battery electrolyte to mix with salt water. Even small quantities of this combination will produce chlorine gas that can KILL you! If available, please always follow the manufacturer's instructions for testing, jumping, installing, discharging, charging, equalizing and maintaining batteries.

A Glossary of Battery Terms

Ampere-Hour -- One ampere-hour is equal to a current of one ampere flowing for one hour. A unit-quantity of electricity used as a measure of the amount of electrical charge that may be obtained from a storage battery before it requires recharging.
Ampere-Hour Capacity -- The number of ampere-hours which can be delivered by a storage battery on a single discharge. The ampere-hour capacity of a battery on discharge is determined by a number of factors, of which the following are the most important: final limiting voltage; quantity of electrolyte; discharge rate; density of electrolyte; design of separators; temperature, age, and life history of the battery; and number, design, and dimensions of electrodes.
Anode -- In a primary or secondary cell, the metal electrode that gives up electrons to the load circuit and dissolves into the electrolyte.
Aqueous Batteries -- Batteries with water-based electrolytes.
Available Capacity -- The total battery capacity, usually expressed in ampere-hours or milliampere-hours that are available to perform work. This depends on factors such as the endpoint voltage, quantity and density of electrolyte, temperature, discharge rate, age, and the life history of the battery.
Battery -- A device that transforms chemical energy into electric energy. The term is usually applied to a group of two or more electric cells connected together electrically. In common usage, the term "battery" is also applied to a single cell, such as a household battery.
Battery Types -- There are, in general, two type of batteries: primary batteries, and secondary storage or accumulator batteries. Primary types, although sometimes consisting of the same active materials as secondary types, are constructed so that only one continuous or intermittent discharge can be obtained. Secondary types are constructed so that they may be recharged, following a partial or complete discharge, by the flow of direct current through them in a direction opposite to the current flow on discharge. By recharging after discharge, a higher state of oxidation is created at the positive plate or electrode and a lower state at the negative plate, returning the plates to approximately their original charged condition.
Battery Capacity -- The electric output of a cell or battery on a service test delivered before the cell reaches a specified final electrical condition and may be expressed in ampere-hours, watt-hours, or similar units. The capacity in watt-hours is equal to the capacity in ampere-hours multiplied by the battery voltage.
Battery Charger -- A device capable of supplying electrical energy to a battery.
Battery-Charging Rate -- The current expressed in amperes at which a storage battery is charged.
Battery Voltage, final -- The prescribed lower-limit voltage at which battery discharge is considered complete. The cutoff or final voltage is usually chosen so that the useful capacity of the battery is realized. The cutoff voltage varies with the type of battery, the rate of discharge, the temperature, and the kind of service in which the battery is used. The term "cutoff voltage" is applied more particularly to primary batteries, and "final voltage" to storage batteries. Synonym: Voltage, cutoff.
C -- The rated capacity, in ampere-hours, for a specific, constant discharge current (where i is the number of hours the cell can deliver this current). For example, the C₅ capacity is the ampere-hours that can be delivered by a cell at constant current in 5 hours. As a cell's capacity is not the same at all rates, C₅ is usually less than C₂₀ for the same cell.
Capacity -- The quantity of electricity delivered by a battery under specified conditions, usually expressed in ampere-hours.
Cathode -- In a primary or secondary cell, the electrode that, in effect, oxidizes the anode or absorbs the electrons.
Cell -- An electrochemical device, composed of positive and negative plates, separator, and electrolyte, which is capable of storing electrical energy. When encased in a container and fitted with terminals, it is the basic "building block" of a battery.
Charge -- Applied to a storage battery, the conversion of electric energy into chemical energy within the cell or battery. This restoration of the active materials is accomplished by maintaining a unidirectional current in the cell or battery in the opposite direction to that during discharge; a cell or battery which is said to be charged is understood to be fully charged.
Charge Rate -- The current applied to a secondary cell to restore its capacity. This rate is commonly expressed as a multiple of the rated capacity of the cell. For example, the C/10 charge rate of a 500 Ah cell is expressed as,
C/10 rate = 500 Ah / 10 h = 50 A.
Charge, state of -- Condition of a cell in terms of the capacity remaining in the cell.
Charging -- The process of supplying electrical energy for conversion to stored chemical energy.
Constant-Current Charge -- A charging process in which the current of a storage battery is maintained at a constant value. For some types of lead-acid batteries this may involve two rates called the starting and finishing rates.
Constant-Voltage Charge -- A charging process in which the voltage of a storage battery at the terminals of the battery is held at a constant value.
Cycle -- One sequence of charge and discharge. Deep cycling requires that all the energy to an end voltage established for each system be drained from the cell or battery on each discharge. In shallow cycling, the energy is partially drained on each discharge; i.e., the energy may be any value up to 50%.
Cycle Life -- For secondary rechargeable cells or batteries, the total number of charge/discharge cycles the cell can sustain before it becomes inoperative. In practice, end of life is usually considered to be reached when the cell or battery delivers approximately 80% of rated ampere-hour capacity.
Depth of Discharge -- The relative amount of energy withdrawn from a battery relative to how much could be withdrawn if the battery were discharged until exhausted.
Discharge -- The conversion of the chemical energy of the battery into electric energy.
Discharge, deep -- Withdrawal of all electrical energy to the end-point voltage before the cell or battery is recharged.
Discharge, high-rate -- Withdrawal of large currents for short intervals of time, usually at a rate that would completely discharge a cell or battery in less than one hour.
Discharge, low-rate -- Withdrawal of small currents for long periods of time, usually longer than one hour.
Drain -- Withdrawal of current from a cell.
Dry Cell -- A primary cell in which the electrolyte is absorbed in a porous medium, or is otherwise restrained from flowing. Common practice limits the term "dry cell" to the Leclanch" cell, which is the common commercial type.
Electrochemical Couple -- The system of active materials within a cell that provides electrical energy storage through an electrochemical reaction.
Electrode -- An electrical conductor through which an electric current enters or leaves a conducting medium, whether it be an electrolytic solution, solid, molten mass, gas, or vacuum. For electrolytic solutions, many solids, and molten masses, an electrode is an electrical conductor at the surface of which a change occurs from conduction by electrons to conduction by ions. For gases and vacuum, the electrodes merely serve to conduct electricity to and from the medium.
Electrolyte -- A chemical compound which, when fused or dissolved in certain solvents, usually water, will conduct an electric current. All electrolytes in the fused state or in solution give rise to ions which conduct the electric current.
Electropositivity -- The degree to which an element in a galvanic cell will function as the positive element of the cell. An element with a large electropositivity will oxidize faster than an element with a smaller electropositivity.
End-of-Discharge Voltage -- The voltage of the battery at termination of a discharge.
Energy -- Output capability; expressed as capacity times voltage, or watt-hours.
Energy Density -- Ratio of cell energy to weight or volume (watt-hours per pound, or watt-hours per cubic inch).
Float Charging -- Method of recharging in which a secondary cell is continuously connected to a constant-voltage supply that maintains the cell in fully charged condition.
Galvanic Cell -- A combination of electrodes, separated by electrolyte, that is capable of producing electrical energy by electrochemical action.
Gassing -- The evolution of gas from one or both of the electrodes in a cell. Gassing commonly results from self-discharge or from the electrolysis of water in the electrolyte during charging.
Internal Resistance -- The resistance to the flow of an electric current within the cell or battery.
Memory Effect -- A phenomenon in which a cell, operated in successive cycles to the same, but less than full, depth of discharge, temporarily loses the remainder of its capacity at normal voltage levels (usually applies only to Ni-Cd cells).
Negative Terminal -- The terminal of a battery from which electrons flow in the external circuit when the cell discharges.
Nonaqueous Batteries -- Cells that do not contain water, such as those with molten salts or organic electrolytes.
Ohm's Law -- The formula that describes the amount of current flowing through a circuit. Voltage = Current " Resistance.
Open Circuit -- Condition of a battery which is neither on charge nor on discharge (i.e., disconnected from a circuit).
Open-Circuit Voltage -- The difference in potential between the terminals of a cell when the circuit is open (i.e., a no-load condition).
Oxidation -- A chemical reaction that results in the release of electrons by an electrode's active material.
Parallel Connection -- The arrangement of cells in a battery made by connecting all positive terminals together and all negative terminals together, the voltage of the group being only that of one cell and the current drain through the battery being divided among the several cells. See Series Connection.
Polarity -- Refers to the charges residing at the terminals of a battery.
Positive Terminal -- The terminal of a battery toward which electrons flow through the external circuit when the cell discharges.
Primary Battery -- A battery made up of primary cells. See Primary Cell.
Primary Cell -- A cell designed to produce electric current through an electrochemical reaction that is not efficiently reversible. Hence the cell, when discharged, cannot be efficiently recharged by an electric current. Note: When the available energy drops to zero, the cell is usually discarded. Primary cells may be further classified by the types of electrolyte used.
Rated Capacity -- The number of ampere-hours a cell can deliver under specific conditions (rate of discharge, end voltage, temperature); usually the manufacturer's rating.
Rechargeable -- Capable of being recharged; refers to secondary cells or batteries.
Recombination -- State in which the gasses normally formed within the battery cell during its operation, are recombined to form water.
Reduction -- A chemical process that results in the acceptance of electrons by an electrode's active material.
Seal -- The structural part of a galvanic cell that restricts the escape of solvent or electrolyte from the cell and limits the ingress of air into the cell (the air may dry out the electrolyte or interfere with the chemical reactions).
Secondary Battery -- A battery made up of secondary cells. See Storage Battery; Storage Cell.
Self Discharge -- Discharge that takes place while the battery is in an open-circuit condition.
Separator -- The permeable membrane that allows the passage of ions, but prevents electrical contact between the anode and the cathode.
Series Connection -- The arrangement of cells in a battery configured by connecting the positive terminal of each successive cell to the negative terminal of the next adjacent cell so that their voltages are cumulative. See Parallel Connection.
Shelf Life -- For a dry cell, the period of time (measured from date of manufacture), at a storage temperature of 21"C (69"F), after which the cell retains a specified percentage (usually 90%) of its original energy content.
Short-Circuit Current -- That current delivered when a cell is short-circuited (i.e., the positive and negative terminals are directly connected with a low-resistance conductor).
Starting-Lighting-Ignition (SLI) Battery -- A battery designed to start internal combustion engines and to power the electrical systems in automobiles when the engine is not running. SLI batteries can be used in emergency lighting situations.
Stationary Battery -- A secondary battery designed for use in a fixed location.
Storage Battery -- An assembly of identical cells in which the electrochemical action is reversible so that the battery may be recharged by passing a current through the cells in the opposite direction to that of discharge. While many non-storage batteries have a reversible process, only those that are economically rechargeable are classified as storage batteries. Synonym: Accumulator; Secondary Battery. See Secondary Cell.
Storage Cell -- An electrolytic cell for the generation of electric energy in which the cell after being discharged may be restored to a charged condition by an electric current flowing in a direction opposite the flow of current when the cell discharges. Synonym: Secondary Cell. See Storage Battery.
Taper Charge -- A charge regime delivering moderately high-rate charging current when the battery is at a low state of charge and tapering the current to lower rates as the battery becomes more fully charged.
Terminals -- The parts of a battery to which the external electric circuit is connected.
Thermal Runaway -- A condition whereby a cell on charge or discharge will destroy itself through internal heat generation caused by high overcharge or high rate of discharge or other abusive conditions.
Trickle Charging -- A method of recharging in which a secondary cell is either continuously or intermittently connected to a constant-current supply that maintains the cell in fully charged condition.
Vent -- A normally sealed mechanism that allows for the controlled escape of gases from within a cell.
Voltage, cutoff -- Voltage at the end of useful discharge. (See Voltage, end-point.)
Voltage, end-point -- Cell voltage below which the connected equipment will not operate or below which operation is not recommended.
Voltage, nominal -- Voltage of a fully charged cell when delivering rated current.
Wet Cell -- A cell, the electrolyte of which is in liquid form and free to flow and move.

Nanobots

Nanobots are full-time employees of Ancor Wire who move copper to those areas of a boat’s marine electrical system that most require it.

Employed in a process called Nanotechnological Overload Sensing Heat Induced Tranference, the nanobots work to allow a boat wiring harness to move copper according to the power demands of attached accessories. This feature is currently found exclusively in Nanotech Brand Wire.

Because of limited production, this clever boat wiring product is only available one day each year.

Young on Solar Panels

We are pleased to present a guest article from Barbara Young. Barbara writes on solar panel kits and 12 volt systems in her personal hobby blog, 12voltsolarpanels.net. Her efforts are centered on helping people save energy using solar power to reduce CO2 emissions and energy dependency. And, to further those efforts, Barbara generously offered the following overview to those of us in the marine electrical community.

What’s solar power?

Solar energy is radiant energy which is produced by the sun. Every day the sun radiates, or sends out, an immense quantity of energy. The sun radiates more energy in a single second than people have used since the beginning of time!

The energy of the Sun derives from within the sun itself. Like other stars, the sun is a big ball of gases––mostly hydrogen and helium atoms.

The hydrogen atoms in the sun’s core combine to create helium and generate energy in a process called nuclear fusion.

During nuclear fusion, the sun’s extremely high pressure and temperature cause hydrogen atoms to come apart and their nuclei (the central cores of the atoms) to fuse or combine. Four hydrogen nuclei fuse to become one helium atom. But the helium atom contains less mass compared to four hydrogen atoms that fused. Some matter is lost during nuclear fusion. The lost matter is emitted into space as radiant energy.

It takes an incredible number of years for the energy in the sun’s core to make its way to the solar surface, and then just a little over eight minutes to travel the 93 million miles to earth. The solar energy travels to the earth at a speed of 186,000 miles per second, the velocity of light.

Only a small part of the power radiated by the sun into space strikes the earth, one part in two billion. Yet this volume of energy is enormous. Daily enough energy strikes the usa to provide the nation’s energy needs for one and a half years!

Where does all of this energy go?

About 15 percent of the sun’s energy that hits our planet is reflected back into space. Another 30 percent is used to evaporate water, which, lifted in to the atmosphere, produces rainfall. Solar energy is also absorbed by plants, the land, and the oceans. The remaining could be used to supply our energy needs.

Who invented solar energy ?

Folks have harnessed solar energy for centuries. Since the 7th century B.C., people used simple magnifying glasses to concentrate the light of the sun into beams so hot they’d cause wood to catch fire. More than a century ago in France, a scientist used heat from a solar collector to produce steam to drive a steam engine. In the beginning of this century, scientists and engineers began researching ways to use solar power in earnest. One important development was obviously a remarkably efficient solar boiler introduced by Charles Greeley Abbott, a united states astrophysicist, in 1936.

The solar water heater became popular at this time in Florida, California, and the Southwest. The industry started in the early 1920s and was in full swing just before The second world war. This growth lasted prior to the mid-1950s when low-cost gas took over as primary fuel for heating American homes.

People and world governments remained largely indifferent to the possibilities of solar technology prior to the oil shortages of the1970s. Today, people use solar technology to heat buildings and water and also to generate electricity.

How we use solar power today ?

Solar energy can be used in several different ways, of course. There’s two simple forms of solar power:

Solar thermal energy collects the sun’s warmth through 1 of 2 means: in water or in an anti-freeze (glycol) mixture.
Solar photovoltaic energy converts the sun’s radiation to usable electricity.

Here are the five most practical and popular methods solar energy can be used:

Small portable solar photovoltaic systems. We see these used everywhere, from calculators to solar garden products. Portable units can be used for everything from RV appliances while single panel systems can be used traffic signs and remote monitoring stations.
Solar pool heating. Running water in direct circulation systems through a solar collector is an extremely practical solution to heat water for your pool or spa.
Thermal glycol energy to heat water. In this method (indirect circulation), glycol is heated by natural sunlight and the heat is then transferred to water in a hot water tank. This process of collecting the sun’s energy is much more practical now than ever before. In areas as far north as Edmonton, Alberta, solar thermal to heat water is economically sound. It can pay for itself in three years or less.
Integrating solar photovoltaic energy into your home or office power. In many parts on the planet, solar photovoltaics is an economically feasible solution to supplement the power of your own home. In Japan, photovoltaics are competitive with other kinds of power. In america alone, new incentive programs make this form of solar energy ever more viable in many states. An increasingly popular and practical way of integrating solar energy into the power of your home or business is through the use of building integrated solar photovoltaics.
Large independent photovoltaic systems. For those who have enough sun power at your site, you might be able to go off grid. You may also integrate or hybridize your solar energy system with wind power or other kinds of alternative energy to stay ‘off the grid.’

How can Photovoltaic panels work ?

Silicon is mounted beneath non-reflective glass to produce photovoltaic panels. These panels collect photons from the sun, converting them into DC electrical energy. The power created then flows into an inverter. The inverter transforms the energy into basic voltage and AC electrical power.

Pv cells are prepared with particular materials called semiconductors such as silicon, which is presently the most generally used. When light hits the Photovoltaic cell, a particular share of it is absorbed inside the semiconductor material. This means that the energy of the absorbed light is given to the semiconductor.

The energy unfastens the electrons, permitting them to run freely. Solar cells also have one or more electric fields that act to compel electrons unfastened by light absorption to flow in a specific direction. This flow of electrons is a current, and by introducing metal links on the top and bottom of the -Photovoltaic cell, the current can be drawn to use it externally.

Do you know the benefits and drawbacks of solar power ?

Solar Pro Arguments

Heating our homes with oil or propane or using electricity from power plants running with coal and oil is a cause of global warming and climate disruption. Solar power, on the other hand, is clean and environmentally-friendly.
Solar hot-water heaters require little maintenance, and their initial investment could be recovered within a relatively limited time.
Solar hot-water heaters can work in nearly every climate, even just in very cold ones. Simply choose the best system for your climate: drainback, thermosyphon, batch-ICS, etc.
Maintenance costs of solar powered systems are minimal and also the warranties large.
Financial incentives (USA, Canada, European states…) can reduce the cost of the initial investment in solar technologies. The U.S. government, for instance, offers tax credits for solar systems certified by by the SRCC (Solar Rating and Certification Corporation), which amount to 30 percent of the investment (2009-2016 period).

Solar Con Arguments

The initial investment in Solar Hot water heaters or in Solar PV Electric Systems is higher than that required by conventional electric and gas heaters systems.
The payback period of solar PV-electric systems is high, as well as those of solar space heating or solar cooling (only the solar hot water heating payback is short or relatively short).
Solar water heating do not support a direct in conjunction with radiators (including baseboard ones).
Some ac (solar space heating and the solar cooling systems) are expensive, and rather untested technologies: solar air conditioning isn’t, till now, a really economical option.
The efficiency of solar powered systems is rather influenced by sunlight resources. It’s in colder climates, where heating or electricity needs are higher, that the efficiency is smaller.

About the Author – Barbara Young writes on RV solar panel kits in her personal hobby blog 12voltsolarpanels.net. Her efforts are centered on helping people save energy using solar power to reduce CO2 emissions and energy dependency.