Gel battery: pros and cons, photo

Modern science is developing at an accelerated pace - now nothing stands still. Habitual for many mechanisms are changing to their modernized and more innovative counterparts. One of the brightest examples is a modern car. Each node is now different from those "ancestors", which produced just some of a decade ago. Hardly before anyone could seriously think that a modern car owner can charge his electric car directly under his window from a normal household outlet. Today this is a reality, and besides the most ordinary. Another bright example of technology development is a gel battery. Pros and cons of its we will consider in our article. All who used such, consider, that it is a quite good alternative to traditional acidic batteries. However, did scientists in gel batteries eliminate all the disadvantages of traditional acid-lead analogues?

Gel batteries: what is it?

Several years ago, in the automotive market, along with traditional batteries, gel-based car batteries began to appear . Pros and cons of no one else knew. And the principle of action was virtually identical to the lead-acid battery. The difference of this battery in special chemical elements in the electrolyte. Due to these elements, it is inside the battery in the gel state. The electrolyte really looks like jelly. In this case, outwardly in such a battery, there are all the signs of a standard battery.

Over time, production technologies developed, and two types of gel batteries appeared:

• AGM.
• GEL.

Below we will discuss them in more detail.

AGM technology

These three letters are deciphered as "absorbent glass mats". In fact, these "glass mats" are the most common fiberglass. It is located inside the device, between the positive and negative lead plate. This glass fabric contains a jelly-like electrolyte in a bound state. Do not think that this is an innovation. In fact, the composition of the electrolyte practically does not differ from the traditional mixture. Here, too, there is acid. Electrolytic liquid is contained in a special fiberglass separator. Due to this, jelly does not spread. This feature makes it possible to operate the battery in virtually any position. You can even put it on your side - and it will work. The battery is completely safe. Harmful substances that have the property of evaporating, now firmly hold in the pores of fiberglass and are used only for chemical reactions. This is the most budgetary gel battery for cars. Pros and cons of it correspond to the cost and technology. The standard lifetime of such batteries is only 5 years. However, this figure is not the limit. The manufacturers have models whose service life can be tens of years. At the same time, the battery will not lose its characteristics.

Shelf life and application features

A standard gel battery is capable of withstanding up to 200 recharging cycles, as well as full discharge, for the entire service life. That's not all. The battery can withstand 50 cycles when discharged in half and up to 800 at a discharge level of 30%. Experts argue that devices built on this technology, suitable for use in backup power systems. If you fully comply with the optimal temperatures and operating rules, then there are all chances that the battery will be able to work out the time declared by the manufacturer.

GEL technology

So, we looked at fiberglass gel batteries for cars. Pros and cons of them - the ability to work in any position, safety for people, the need for strict compliance with the temperature regime, short service life and a small cyclical resource. Batteries made on the basis of GEL technology are characterized by higher technical characteristics. There is a greater cyclical resource, energy intensity and other advantages. These batteries are sometimes capable of withstanding up to 800 charge / discharge cycles without loss of capacity. Motorists have an opinion that the name of this technology can be decoded as helium. However, you need to understand that this gel. Between the lead plates of the battery there is a special separator. In the case of these devices, silica gel is contained inside. They filled all the internal space at the stage of production. Then, the silica gel freezes and, as a result, solidifies. In this case, it will have a huge number of pores. Here, silica gel is retained.

Advantages of GEL-batteries

Since all the internal space in the device is occupied by a separator-silica gel, in these batteries, it is possible to completely exclude any possibility of shedding the plates. This has the best effect on the resource and lifetime. Even more - this design has allowed to improve the overall technical characteristics. This positively influenced the resource and stability of the device to a deep discharge. Car owners already appreciated the gel batteries for the car. Positive feedback about them really is. There are a lot of them. Also, these owner testimonials can be heard even just on the street. And let the nominal life of the GEL-battery is not much higher than the life of the AGM batteries, but as for the number of charge / discharge cycles, this figure will be higher by no more than 50%, the motorists note.

Resource

In simpler terms, a standard gel battery made using such a technology can easily withstand about 350 discharge cycles at full discharge depth, up to 550 at half and up to 1200 cycles with a discharge of 30%. Thus, deciding to purchase such gel batteries for the car, their characteristics must be taken into account. And they can be saved - they are more resistant to deep discharges, which means that they practically do not need service and repair. Because of the design features, these devices are much less exposed to the process of sulphation. This means that they can easily survive in a state of full discharge for two or more days.

Advantages and disadvantages

Regardless of what the gel battery, pluses and minuses, it definitely has. Consider them. Among the main advantages are the following:

• The battery has high starting currents.
• Electrolyte will not leak even if the case gets seriously damaged.
• Such batteries do not even need minimal maintenance - they are even made in an unattended enclosure.
• The battery can work in any position.
• And finally, if the electronics are good, the battery life may be significantly higher than that of its acid-lead relatives.

Among the shortcomings, there is a weak resistance to recharge. In the process of charging it is recommended to constantly monitor the process and observe the indicator. Also there is poor resistance to low temperatures. Finally, a significant disadvantage is the high price.

Not for Russian winter

That's all the disadvantages. What can we say in the end? This is a good option in various systems of emergency source of electricity. But in our climate, gel batteries for the car should not be used. Some difficulties may arise with them. And even if they have a lot of attractive advantages, these batteries can not become a reliable assistant in Russian climatic conditions - it is enough to operate the battery at least one winter, and it will fail much earlier. But if you really want, then no one will be able to prohibit the use of these devices. The most important thing is that the on-board network can maintain the necessary charge modes. In the case of domestic cars, this can be quite problematic, even if the voltage regulator is working properly and will be replaced by 16 V. However, the owners of the new foreign cars are excellent gel batteries for the car. For and against their use in this case, a big role does not play. The gel battery will completely satisfy the needs of the machine in electricity.

How do I charge?

Now, despite the number of significant advantages, such AKB are rare. Motorists do not yet know how to maintain and care for such a battery. Not all service centers today serve gel batteries for the car. What is the difference between chargers for them, too, few people know. Even some specialists in SRT do not know how to properly service such batteries. When charging the main thing - accurately observe the level of the applied voltage. If this limit is exceeded, the battery will fail. In the technical information for a particular battery indicate the allowable voltage. This requirement should not be neglected. Do not forget that the gel battery can be stored for a long time in a fully discharged state. But when a high voltage is applied at the time of charging, the electrolyte will start producing gas. Its volumes are so large that it can not be held inside the separator. It may be dangerous. It is necessary to know exactly how to use gel batteries for a car. Negative reviews of them are written by those who did not read the instructions.

Charger: what should it be?

The characteristics of this device depend on the characteristics of the particular battery. If we consider that the gel batteries have a special design, then a memory for a standard battery in this case will not work. The magnitude of the final charge voltage for each type of battery will be different. Therefore, high voltage, which is fed to gel AGM-batteries, will provoke the boiling of the electrolyte. The temperature compensation of the memory must exactly correspond to the number that the manufacturer specified for a particular battery. The correct voltage is also important. It should be remembered that gel batteries are very sensitive to this parameter. The charging process must be carried out under clearly set and defined voltage.

Summary

That's what a gel battery is. The pros and cons of such batteries make them pay attention to them. Such batteries can be safely installed on expensive foreign cars. The price fully corresponds to the quality. And with proper care and observance of simple rules, these batteries will serve long enough.

So, we found out what the gel battery has pluses and minuses.