History of Batteries

Gaston Plante invented the lead-acid battery back in 1859. The early batteries were placed in glass jars and stored in wooden boxes. Batteries now are much safer, more efficient and are much more user friendly.

What is a battery?

A battery is a small chemical plant, which stores energy in the plates. Lead acid batteries are chemically charged with pure sulfuric acid and pure distilled water. This solution is called "Electrolyte." The sulfuric acid enters the clean pores of the internal lead battery plates causing a normal chemical action.

When a battery is discharged the lead active material of the positive plates combines with the sulphate of the sulfuric acid forming lead sulphate (crystallized state). When the battery is charged, the sulphate returns into the electrolyte (liquid state) and the cycle continues until a problem begins to evolve.

Why Batteries Die Prematurely

In the United States alone battery replacement is a 17 billion dollar market. Around 75% of these "starting", "power", "stand-by", "industrial", "marine" and all types of lead-acid batteries have stopped working prematurely, due to the accumulation of lead sulphate crystals on the plates, while the remaining 25% fail due to mechanical failures.

The number one cause of mechanically sound battery failures occurs when Lead Sulphate crystals turn abnormally hard and clog the plates. This causes premature failure approximately 75% of the time. +Sulfuric acid cannot enter the pores and the battery starves to death. Sulphation occurs naturally in a lead-acid battery, however during the charge phase some crystals remain, accumulate and harden between plates to the point that normal charging will not break them down. The other 25% of batteries fail prematurely due to mechanical failures. For information on how to inspect and test a battery to determine its failure contact our headquarters and speak to our Technical Support Managers.