Influence of Battery Charger Types on Batteries’ Electrolyte Temperature during Charging in Eldoret Town, Kenya

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The study involved experimental design in which 10 battery charging stations were studied, with respect to each charger type. Temperature was recorded on electrolyte during charging on regular time intervals. The mean temperature of electrolyte in batteries charged by both chargers were significant at a=0.05 (t = 5.273, df = 1, p = 0.0000). Charging of different types of batteries by an industrial charger was not significant (t = 0.443, df = 4, p = 0.778), likewise the batteries charged by the Jua Kali charger was also not significant (t=0.277, df=4, p=0.983). However, individual batteries charged with industrial chargers produced higher temperatures (p < 0.05). Capacity test on the two sets of experiments showed that the batteries charged by Jua Kali chargers produced 50% of the charge when compared with batteries charged by industrial chargers. New design consideration must be added to the Jua Kali charger for improved charging.

Published In : IJCAT Journal Volume 1, Issue 8

Date of Publication : 30 September 2014

Pages : 404 - 408

Figures :04

Tables : 02

Publication Link : Influence of Battery Charger Types on Batteries’ Electrolyte Temperature during Charging in Eldoret Town, Kenya

Daniel Rutto : School of Engineering, University of Rwanda, P.O. Box 57, Nyagatare, Rwanda

Simon Wanami : Department of Technology Education, University of Eldoret, P.O. Box 1125, Eldoret, Kenya

Peter Okemwa : Department of Technology Education, University of Eldoret, P.O. Box 1125, Eldoret, Kenya

Charge

Charger type

Temperature

Electrolyte

Poor charging practice is responsible for shortening the life of batteries more than any other cause. The influence of charger type on the temperature showed that the batteries charged by Jua Kali chargers had lower values as compared to the batteries charged by the industrial chargers. The charging mechanism of the Jua Kali chargers thus depicted the undercharging of batteries, which poses danger to the batteries being charged. The effects of such chargers on batteries include sulfation of plates, waste of time and money in the event that batteries are damaged beyond control. The Jua Kali charged batteries were approximated to supply electrical energy half way those of batteries charged by the industrial chargers as the disconnect voltage was expected to be 10.5 volts. This thus invokes the need to look into ways of improving the design of the Jua Kali manufactured battery charger to match those of industrial type.

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