Investigation of the Methods of Testing Lead-Acid Battery Health by means of Discharge and Impedance Testing

Priebbenow, Paul (2010) Investigation of the Methods of Testing Lead-Acid Battery Health by means of Discharge and Impedance Testing. [USQ Project]


Abstract

This project gives an overview of lead-acid battery technology and some of the existing methods of testing battery health. The Physical and chemical properties of lead-acid batteries are investigated along with the effects of charging and discharging. The methods of discharge and impedance testing are investigated in greater detail with the intention of implementing such a test for the lead-acid batteries used in the Neonatal Transport Equipment constructed at BAC (Buchanan Advanced Composites).

The main focus of this project as set out in the Project Specifications (Appendix A) is the development of an automatic discharge testing device for use at BAC. This device is to replace the existing manual discharge testing process of batteries for the Neonatal Transport Systems. A PIC18F4550 microcontroller is used to control the testing process along with the necessary hardware and software developed to perform the required functions. Tera Term is used to log the data transferred from the test device to a PC via a RS-232 serial communication link. To analyse the data logged during a discharge test, MATLAB has used initially to perform the required calculations and plot data, but an Excel spreadsheet has been developed for this purpose for use at BAC.

This automatic test device will save the employees at BAC much time in performing the discharge tests for quality control. Only a few minutes of labour are required per discharge test using this device, whereas the manual test procedure required 30 minutes of labour. This device will save many hours of work and allow employees to perform productive tasks while batteries are being tested.


Statistics for USQ ePrint 52074
Statistics for this ePrint Item
Item Type: USQ Project
Item Status: Live Archive
Additional Information: Files associated with this item cannot be displayed due to copyright restrictions.
Faculty/School / Institute/Centre: Historic - Faculty of Engineering and Surveying - No Department (Up to 30 Jun 2013)
Qualification: Bachelor of Engineering (Electrical and Electronic)
Date Deposited: 20 Feb 2024 01:36
Last Modified: 20 Feb 2024 01:36
Uncontrolled Keywords: Lead-Acid Battery; Discharge; Impedance Testing
URI: https://sear.unisq.edu.au/id/eprint/52074

Actions (login required)

View Item Archive Repository Staff Only