The importance of observation of structural changes of lead acid battery active mass in special applications in the mining industry

To be able to use lead acid batteries in particularly difficult conditions in the mining industry, it is very important to understand the events that occur during traction operation of mining carts, or auxiliary lighting. Failure of lead accumulators in the hazardous environments, where it is desired non-explosive embodiment, may have fatal consequences. The paper describes the possibility of observing changes in active materials at the microscopic level. The process of charging and discharging lead-acid accumulator has been described in many publications. The aim of this article is to supplement known information about a series of images and analysis that will accurately show progressive changes in the structure of the negative electrode. Negative electrodes are, at each cycle, charged and discharged under the same conditions, scanned with a scanning electron microscope, the elemental analysis (EDS) is performed, and the size of the individual sulfate crystals is measured. Previously measured results indicate that during the charging the conversion of PbSO4 crystals into a charged form of the active mass is not complete, and there is a rapid increase in the size of lead sulfate crystals on the negative electrode. This article compares changes in electrode surface composition after two cycles. There is a clear loss of lead and, on the other hand, the visible growth of sulfur. This indicates progressive surface sulfation.