CAM oxide: 100% certified tetragonal

Lead batteries were the most utilized source of energy accumulation of the 20th century.

Studies of the production techniques of lead batteries are well known to the industry, and they are still ongoing, to uncover the mysteries and constantly increase the performance of this technology.

One of the main benefits of this type of battery, with respect to others, is the reliability of life cycle and performance with time. To achieve this, one of the essential elements is to have a lead oxide which makes a paste that adheres perfectly to the grid.

“Orthorhomb-PbO also has a layered structure; the layers are built of infinite Pb-O chains.
The surfaces of the layers are composed of Pb2+ions and each oxygen ion is surrounded by four lead ions. The chain layers are stabilized by van der Waals bonds. Therefore, the orthorhombic-PbO crystals are prone to flaking”
[D. Pavlov, ‘Lead Acid Batteries, publisher – p. 223’].

What kind of crystal structure does CAM ball mills produce?

We recently ordered chemical testing of a sample of lead oxide from a CAM MOP 30 ball mill at the University of l’Aquila, Department of Chemical Engineering[1].

The results were sensational:

– Litharge, Pb1O1 (Screen ICSD 98-006-2843), Crystal system: Tetragonal, 87,8%

–  Lead, Pb1 (Screen ICSD 98-009-6501), 12,1%

The first thing that jumped out at us about these results was the complete absence of orthorhombic oxide, and this is fantastic because it means that batteries produced with this oxide will be reliable over time, with consistent performance.

Francesco Marfisi
Electrical Manager CAM srl

[1] The chemical tests were carried out at the Università degli Studi dell’Aquila, Chemical Engineering Department. The work was done under the guidance of Prof. Giuliana Taglieri and research Fellow Eng. Valeria Daniele.