Growth and Electrochemical Performance of Lead and Lead Oxide Nanowire Arrays as Electrodes for Lead-Acid Batteries

n this work, we present the growth and electrochemical performance of nanostructured lead and lead oxide electrodes for lead-acid batteries. The electrodes were obtained by template electrodeposition in polycarbonate membranes, acting as template. Electrochemical tests were conducted at constant current in 5M aqueous solution of sulphuric acid, after assembling nanostructured lead and lead oxide electrodes in a zero-gap configuration using a commercially available separator. The main advantages of these electrodes are the high specific energy and power density, and the wide surface area, about 70 times higher than the geometrical one. These features allowed high discharge rates, up to 20C. Moreover, in comparison with commercial lead-acid batteries that usually deliver about 30 mAh/g for only 15-20 cycles at 1C rate, our batteries are able to charge and discharge at very high rate (1C and more) without decay up to 1200 cycles. Copyright © 2013, AIDIC Servizi S.r.l.