Battery leakage knowledge and how to maintain it

1. Introduction of battery leakage

Battery leakage refers to the fact that during the charging process, due to the volatilization of the electrolyte, the electrolyte flows out, causing a large number of bubbles in the battery. Battery leakage mainly has the following reasons:

● The electrolyte is not pure enough

If the content of impurities in the electrolyte exceeds a certain standard, a large number of bubbles will be generated, causing the battery leakage.

● The battery is assembled too tightly or too loosely

If the battery is not operated in strict accordance with the specifications during the assembly process, it may cause the internal structure to be loose and produce more bubbles.

● The seal is not tight

If the seal is not tight or the connection is not secure, it will lead to leakage.

● The electrolyte contains corrosive substances

Alkaline batteries drop rapidly after long-term storage. We may wonder the difference of lithium vs alkaline batteries because of the common use oif lithium batteries in our daily life. After the alkaline battery is stored for too long, the active material will be deteriorated and consumed, resulting in a serious reduction in capacity.

2. Lead-acid battery leakage analysis

① Causes of lead-acid battery leakage

During the charging process of the batteries, due to volatilization of the electrolyte and other reasons, a part of the electrolyte flows out of the inside, forming a battery leak.

After leakage, the electrolyte will gradually diffuse to the surface of the plate, reducing the battery capacity. There are many reasons for battery leakage, and different reasons have different solutions. In general, there are several reasons for battery leakage:

The batteries assembly is not in place, and the batteries and the plate are not tightly connected, resulting in poor contact between the plate and the electrolyte.

The purity of the electrolyte is not enough, and the electrolyte contains impurities or the electrolyte concentration is too high and can also lead to leakage. During the long-term storage of the batteries, due to the influence of the external environment and its own factors, the phenomenon of "water loss" occurs.

The battery is deformed and ruptured by external forces during use, which will also cause battery leakage. The abnormal discharge phenomenon of the battery is affected by external environmental factors during use, which will also cause the battery leakage.

② Precautions for lead-acid battery leakage

Choose high-quality lead acid battery to ensure their quality, and pay attention to reasonable assembly. Prevent corrosion and rust in battery poles, shells and other parts. The use of high-quality sealing materials to prevent leakage caused by poor battery sealing.

During the assembly process, it is necessary to operate in strict accordance with the operating specifications to ensure that the battery is well sealed. Regularly inspect and maintain the battery to find and deal with problems in a timely manner.

Choose the right electrolyte. The electrolyte of the battery should meet the quality requirements. Make sure the surface of the battery is clean to avoid foreign metal objects entering the battery and causing leakage.

The battery should be handled carefully when installing and disassembling to avoid impact and scratches. Clean the battery regularly to remove internal impurities and dust and keep the inside clean and dry.

3. Causes of cylindrical battery leakage

There is no gasket installed between the battery housing and the plate, resulting in leakage. In daily use, the following methods can be used to prevent leakage from cylindrical batteries:

• When assembling the batteries, try to puncture the metal on the plate to avoid leakage caused by metal puncture. 
• During the charging process, excessive current should be avoided as much as possible, otherwise there will also be leakage.
• Pay attention to the sealing performance when storing the battery and try to avoid exposing it to air.
• For metal puncture, it is optional to fill it with a substance such as rubber. At the same time, you can also choose to scrap the  battery leakage.
• Before use, you can check whether the battery is leaking. If there is a liquid leak, be sure to replace the new battery in time.

4. Will lithium ion battery leakage occur

Let's first look at the composition of lithium-ion batteries: it is composed of cathode, anode, and electrolyte. The cathode and anode of lithium-ion batteries do not undergo short circuits, mainly because both the anode and cathode have electrolyte involved in the charging and discharging process.

The function of the electrolyte is to exchange metal cations and anions electrically into the cathode and anode materials in the electrode. Especilly the lifepo4 batteries do not leak because the electrolyte exchanges metal cations more strongly than metal cations to anions.

Because of this, lithium-ion batteries do not leak during the charging and discharging process. Therefore, when using lithium batteries, we must pay attention not to short circuit the cathode and anode. If there is a short circuit, there will be leakage.

Although lithium-ion batteries do not leak from batteries, the following problems may occur during use:

• During use, the charging time is too long, and the battery may also have insufficient capacity under high or low temperature conditions.

If the battery is in an undervoltage state for a long time, and it cannot be charged in time or overdischarged, it will lead to a rapid loss of battery capacity.

• If there is electrolyte inside the batteries and it is not used up in time, it may cause electrolyte leakage.

Therefore, in daily use, pay attention to the maintenance and maintenance of the batteries. Avoid prolonged storage or charging to extend battery life.

• Regular charge-discharge cycles are performed to restore the performance of lithium-ion batteries.

Do not charge beyond the rated capacity during the normal charging process to ensure the stability of the lithium-ion battery capacity.

• Lithium-ion batteries may have insufficient capacity when used in low or high temperature environments.

When the temperature is higher than 45 ° C, a large amount of heat will be generated inside the lithium-ion battery, which will cause the internal structure to expand and crack when the temperature is too high.

4. What to do with the battery leakage

After finding that the battery is leaking, you should immediately stop charging, wrap the battery in a plastic bag, and store it properly. If the amount of battery leakage is not large, it can be disinfected with medical alcohol or medical iodophor and then rinsed with clean water.

If the battery leaks a large amount of fluid, or the electrolyte has a peculiar smell, it is necessary to replace the new battery in time. For batteries with serious leakage, it is recommended to go to a regular maintenance institution for treatment. During the storage of alkaline batteries, the following points should be noted:

• Do not expose alkaline batteries to sunlight.
• Do not contact water when stored in alkaline batteries.
• Do not store alkaline batteries in a humid environment. If the battery leakage is serious and cannot be dealt with by itself, it should be repaired by a professional maintenance agency on time.
• After the battery leaks, if the electrolyte in the battery is acidic, replace the electrolyte with neutral in time.

If the electrolyte is alkaline, replace the electrolyte with neutral in time. For batteries that leak seriously, cannot be treated by themselves, and cannot be treated by professional maintenance institutions, it is recommended to purchase special battery handling equipment.

Before replacing the battery, it is best to isolate the battery from other items. Such as keys, mobile phones and other metal objects. Because the metal reacts with alkaline batteries, it produces a large amount of hydrogen, which can cause fires in severe cases.

5. How to maintain the battery to prevent the leakage

Care should be taken when using it, do not overcharge, and do not overdischarge. Once the battery capacity is found to be insufficient, it should be replenished and charged on time.

Do not remove or remove the battery at will. When disassembling the battery, the cathode and anode connection wires of the battery should be cut off first, and the anode pole of the battery should be wrapped with insulating tape to prevent short circuits.

When using the charger to charge, you should pay attention to whether the battery is bubbling. If there is bubbling, it means that the battery has warmed up and should stop charging immediately.

When using lead-acid batteries as energy storage sources, attention should be paid to minimizing their contact area and time with other equipment. If it is in contact with other devices for a long time or is not charged for a long time, it will cause the electrolyte in the battery to evaporate, and in severe cases, it will cause the battery to leak.

It is strictly forbidden to touch the insulation layer and terminal posts of the cathode and anode connecting wires with your hands during the charging process. Doing so can result in a short circuit that can cause the battery to burn out or catch fire.

6. Conclusion

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