Synthesis and electrochemical performances of tribasic and tetrabasic lead sulfates prepared by reactive grinding

Tribasic lead sulfate (3BS) and tetrabasic lead sulfate (4BS), used as precursors of the positive active material in the lead/acid batteries, were prepared by a new method: reactive grinding. The effects of various experimental parameters (stoichiometry, hygrometry of the starting compounds, duration of mechanical treatment) upon the nature and morphological features of the resulting phase were investigated. Among them, hygrometry turned out to be the most critical one. With water in excess, only 3BS was produced while dry reagents led to 4BS. In both cases, samples with a small particle size and high reactivity were obtained. In order to evaluate the influence of the morphology upon the electrochemical performances of such grinding produced samples, the capacity was measured and compared with that of traditional 3BS and 4BS samples. (C) 1998 Published by Elsevier Science S.A.