Separator tech charges ahead to new levels of performance

Faster rechargeability and lower maintenance continues to be the holy grail for batteries and now Daramic is pushing the envelope further still with its latest separator technology — HiCharge.

Hicharge Industrial Separator Features

Key characteristics of Hi-Charge separators are their serrated rib pattern, designed with a 3.5mm pitch to enhance circulation, improve backup time and aid rechargeability.

An antimony suppression formulation reduces top-up frequency, lowers float current and reduces plate corrosion.

HiCharge’s closer rib pitch allows for uniform compression and reduces sulfation.

HiCharge separators deliver strong results when tested in deep cycle applications

In motive power (flooded flat plate battery) the separators provide:

• Greater than 2x battery cycle life improvement in repeated testing

• 2.5x longer life in discharge motion testing

• 2.75x longer life in a stationary discharge test.

Solar battery application (flooded tubular battery):

• Enhanced battery life with capacity improvement of 6% during cycling

• Positive plate corrosion improvement through Sb suppression and water loss reduction of 25%

• Decreased active material shedding and deposition on separator surface.

Flooded deep cycle batteries tend to operate in a partial-stateof-charge, causing plate sulfation, continued decline in backup time and premature battery failure.

However, Daramic says its innovation solves these issues, delivering faster rechargeability, lower maintenance and longer life.

Examples of deployment in practice include a forklift battery that lasts 100% longer than current batteries on the market — with the ability to charge up enough over a lunch break to last through the remainder of the day with more than 10% improved backup time, sustained over the unit’s cycle life.

HiCharge can also boost the efficiency of a solar battery’s energy capture during peak sunlight periods, with 10% improved charged acceptance and reduced maintenance from a water loss reduction of 20-25%, Daramic says.

And with the increasing take-up of residential UPS systems in mind, Daramic says using HiCharge could see a home UPS unit continue to provide power over 15% longer during an outage than competing products.

Daramic’s award entry aims to step up to meet evolving market needs for deep cycle applications, which have been identified by the Consortium for Battery Innovation as a priority area of research for lead acid batteries.

For more than 90 years Daramic has been a market leader in developing new and innovative technology for the lead acid battery market and is the global leader in supplying high performance polyethylene battery separators to the Pb battery industry.

The 2023 award entry takes Daramic’s technology development to a new level, following its presentation of HD Plus at last year’s convention in Naples.

HiCharge can change what is possible across many deep cycle applications.

Testing of HiCharge in many deep cycle applications was completed in 2022 and the product is just now being offered to most markets.