![]() They do suffer from electrolyte contamination. 40 grams per liter I think was the typical dose but higher doses help, even as high as 80. Electrolyte was potassium hydroxide and lithium hydroxide as an additive that keeps it from being contaminated by carbon dioxide and raised cell performance. Negative was iron oxide and nothing else. It was a black powder with nothing else in it. The chinese cells did not appear to use anything but the nickel hydroxide in the positive unless maybe they used carbon black. Older nickel iron cells used nickel flake for conductivity since nickel hydroxide is a poor conductor. Negative is iron oxide, aka red rust in powder form. So basically 9 grams per watt is the typical amount in a pocket cell, thats how much i counted on my scale when i tore the cell down. You can make your own nickel hydroxide (nickel hydroxide III, black nickel oxide) but its expensive, typically 11 dollars a lb bought from a US supplier in bulk or 20 dollars a lb from pottery suppliers. ![]() They are pretty simple but the biggest issue is nickel itself. Reminds me a lot of the small wind mill market, very sad. I cam across it a lot when I looked into the batteries. I would watch this thread, anytime nickel iron batteries are discussed various industry players seems to magically join a forum under whatever name and begin arguing and mud slinging. The chinese cells used razor thin metal, poor nickel plating and they skimp on the lithium hydroxide, a dopant for the electrolyte that makes it last longer and charge more efficiently. No room for the chemicals to move or fall out of the plate. Basically the chemistry and nickel plated steel are what give it life. The mark up on them is massive and honestly the cell quality is extremely poor. Even order a small changhong cell, the type resold in the US for ridiculous sums. I did a ton of research into this a while back. Big, bulky, stinky and heavy but still your best bet. So if you're looking for a battery bank, go for big lead acid cells with a lot of acid capacity. The chins have no interest in improving the quality as they know they're the cheapest game in town. He says eventually the lithiums or NiMh with ultra capacitors will be improved and some day eclipse lead acid. The best bang for the buck is still flooded lead acid which has a high power density and is still the cheapest. So be wary of you intend to buy one of these installations. ![]() The life is also often 50% of what is stated. Their power ratings are over stated and often provide 1/3 of what is published. The cases leak and crack, the case to lid seal leaks and the posts leak. I'm no expert on stationary cells by any stretch of the imagination.īut I have a friend who owns (just retired) a fairly large company that does a lot of business in motive and backup battery systems, around $20 million per year.Īll the Chin manufacturers be it Lipo, Edison alkalines, and lead acid cells are providing crap quality.
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