Industrial Automation Magazine India

New European research collaboration optimising lead battery performance

Published on : Thursday 15-10-2020

Investigating the effect of carbon surface functional groups on lead-carbon batteries for micro-hybrids.

October 2020 – Driven by demand for high-performing batteries for the growing start-stop and micro-hybrid automotive market, a new European research collaboration between two leading academic institutes will use tailor-made carbons and utilise advanced physical and electrochemical techniques to study key performance indicators for lead battery technology.

The partnership between the Fraunhofer Institute for Silicate Research (Fraunhofer ISC) and Wroc?aw University of Science and Technology (WUST) has been facilitated by the Consortium for Battery Innovation (CBI), the world's only research hub dedicated to advanced lead battery technology.

Dr Alistair Davidson, Director of CBI, said: "Responding to market demand from the automotive sector, this new research project is building on collaborative workshops organised by the Consortium in partnership with OEMs and car companies over the last few years."

"It's one of a new set of exciting projects aiming to enhance the performance of lead batteries to meet the technical requirements of start-stop and micro-hybrid vehicles."

The 2-year project involves Fraunhofer ISC, a long-standing partner of the Consortium and one of the leading Bavarian centres for material-based research and development in the fields of energy, environment and health, and WUST, one of Poland's leading technical universities.

The research project will explore the fundamental properties of carbon additives with focus on surface functional groups, and the effect they have on lead battery performance. Specifically, it will look at the impact on key performance indicators in lead batteries:

1. Cold cranking amperage (CCA): The high discharge pulse power responsible for starting a car, rated at -18 °C for 30 seconds.

2. Dynamic charge acceptance (DCA): The ability of a battery to accept instantaneous energy during charging.

3. Hydrogen evolution reaction (HER): The side reaction occurring on a negative electrode surface which accelerates the electrolyte loss.

4. Studies of these three performance indicators will utilise screening techniques combined with tailor-made carbons to examine how carbon chemistry interacts with lead and other common additives.

Carbons are a popular additive for enhancing battery performance, and this research project is building on existing research by using innovative techniques to conduct in-depth exploration of additive effects. 

This knowledge is essential for improving the DCA of lead batteries and increasing their uptake in start-stop, micro and mild-hybrid applications, one of the fastest growing automotive markets worldwide and a vital market for delivering cleaner mobility.

CBI's technical roadmap has identified improving DCA performance as one of the vital research goals essential to continuing the innovative advancements in lead battery technology for both energy storage and automotive applications.