Abstract: A method for producing a lead acid battery that operates on the oxygen cycle is disclosed. The method includes the steps of: assembling a cell comprising a positive plate, a negative plate, and a sheet of separator material which is an absorbent, porous filtration medium, so that there is free space between the plates and surfaces of the separator, inserting the cell into a case, introducing into the case a mixture of sulfuric acid and silica including silica from a never dried precipitated silica slurry, causing the sulfuric acid in the mixture in the free space to gel, and sealing the case. The sulfuric acid in the mixture in the free space can be caused to gel by an increase in the silica content thereof, by an increase in the specific gravity thereof, or by both an increase in the silica content thereof, and an increase in the specific gravity thereof.

Abstract: A binderless glass fiber mat suitable for use as a separator for valve regulated (“recombinant”) lead acid (“VRLA”) batteries is disclosed. The separator is produced by a dry process by collecting the fibers from fiberizing apparatus, without subjecting them to a wet paper making or other post forming process, and selecting portions of the collected fibers which are sufficiently uniform in thickness and grammage for use as battery separators. The fibers can be entwined to produce a superior separator material. Additives can be introduced during the collection process to enhance the properties of the separator. A battery comprises at least one stack of alternating positive and negative plates, with the separator between adjacent plates. Separators according to the invention are significantly more resilient and have longer fibers than otherwise identical separators made from different samples of the same glass fibers, but by a conventional wet paper making process.

Abstract: A binderless glass fiber mat suitable for use as a separator for valve regulated (“recombinant”) lead acid (“VRLA”) batteries is disclosed. The separator is produced by a dry process by collecting the fibers from fiberizing apparatus, without subjecting them to a wet paper making or other post forming process, and selecting portions of the collected fibers which are sufficiently uniform in thickness and grammage for use as battery separators. The fibers can be entwined to produce a superior separator material. Additives can be introduced during the collection process to enhance the properties of the separator. A battery comprises at least one stack of alternating positive and negative plates, with the separator between adjacent plates. Separators according to the invention are significantly more resilient and have longer fibers than otherwise identical separators made from different samples of the same glass fibers, but by a conventional wet paper making process.

Abstract: A method for producing a battery separator is disclosed. The method comprises applying a coating of an ethylenically unsaturated monomer to the fibers of a non-woven sheet and polymerizing the monomer in situ on the fiber surfaces. The non-woven sheet is from 50 to 3000 microns thick, and is composed of polyolefin fibers having an average fiber diameter from 0.5 to 5 microns and a surface area from 0.2 to 30 square meters per gram.

Abstract: A method for producing a battery separator from a slurry of fibers which are resistant to the chemicals which are found in a battery, and a thermoplastic binder for the fibers. The method comprises the steps of casting the slurry onto a screen, draining the liquid of the slurry from fibers and binder which collect on the screen, and drying the fibers and binder without softening the binder. Subsequently, usually after the it has been rolled, packaged and shipped, the separator is cut to size and heated to soften the binder. In a preferred embodiment, the fibers are glass fibers having an average diameter less than 3 &mgr;m. In another preferred embodiment, the fibers are organic.

Abstract: Methods and materials for producing microfibers, and methods or collecting the formed fibers as mats, either by themselves or with various additive, are disclosed. The mats are masses of intermeshed glass or other fibers produced by suspending the fibers in a gaseous medium, and collecting the suspended fibers on a foraminous material. The fibers suspended in the gaseous medium have a BET surface area of from 0.2 to 5 m2 per gram. A method for adding additional materials to the mats is also disclosed; this method involves suspending the additives in the gaseous medium with the fibers.