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Technologies
Battery
Energy Alternatives
Chargers and Charging Methods
 
Battery Technologies

Electric Machines
More batteries are damaged by bad charging techniques
Semiconductors
than all other causes combined.
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Charging Schemes
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The charger has three key functions
FAQ
   Getting the charge into the battery (Charging)
 Optimising the charging rate (Stabilising)
 Knowing when to stop (Terminating)
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Charge Termination

Once a battery is fully charged, the charging current has to be

dissipated somehow. The result is the generation of heat and gasses
both of which are bad for batteries. The essence of good charging is
to be able to detect when the reconstitution of the active chemicals is
complete and to stop the charging process before any damage is done
while at all times maintaining the cell temperature within its safe
limits. Detecting this cut off point and terminating the charge is
critical in preserving battery life. In the simplest of chargers this is
when a predetermined upper voltage limit, often called the
termination voltage has been reached. This is particularly important
with fast chargers where the danger of overcharging is greater.

Safe Charging

If for any reason there is a risk of over charging the battery, either
from errors in determining the cut off point or from abuse this will
normally be accompanied by a rise in temperature. Internal fault
conditions within the battery or high ambient temperatures can also
take a battery beyond its safe operating temperature limits. Elevated
temperatures hasten the death of batteries and monitoring the cell
temperature is a good way of detecting signs of trouble from a variety
of causes. The temperature signal, or a resettable fuse, can be used to
turn off or disconnect the charger when danger signs appear to avoid
damaging the battery. This simple additional safety precaution is
particularly important for high power batteries where the
consequences of failure can be both serious and expensive.
  

Charging Times

During fast charging it is possible to pump electrical energy into the

battery faster than the chemical process can react to it, with damaging
results.

The chemical action can not take place instantaneously and there will
be a reaction gradient in the bulk of the electrolyte between the
electrodes with the electrolyte nearest to the electrodes being
converted or "charged" before the electrolyte further away. This is
particularly noticeable in high capacity cells which contain a large
volume of electrolyte.

There are in fact at least three key processes involved in the cell
chemical conversions.

Sponsors  One is the "charge transfer", which is the actual chemical

  reaction taking place at the interface of the electrode with the
electrolyte and this proceeds relatively quickly.
 The second is the "mass transport" or "diffusion" process in
which the materials transformed in the charge transfer process
are moved on from the electrode surface, making way for
further materials to reach the electrode to take part in the
transformation process. This is a relatively slow process
which continues until all the materials have been transformed.
 The charging process may also be subject to other significant
effects whose reaction time should also be taken into account
  

For high power applications, the charging performance may be

limited by the design of the charger.

 Efficiency

When charging high power batteries, the energy loss in the

charger can add significantly to the charging times and to the
operating costs of the application. Typical charger efficiencies
are around 90%, hence the need for efficient designs.

 Inrush Current

When a charger is initially switched on to an empty battery

the inrush current could be considerably higher than the
maximum specified charging current. The charger must
therefore be dimensioned either to deliver or limit this current
pulse.

 Power Factor

This could also be an important consideration for high power

chargers.

See also "Charger Checklist"

 
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