Race Energy BCM21 Installation & user manual - page 9
9
BATTERY TYPE
Each press of the Select (SEL) button will advance the battery selection. The three
LED’s on the top will indicate Flooded, AGM and Gel, or Lithium Ion when lit.
Flooded –
*The lead–acid battery was invented in 1859 by French physicist Gaston
Planté and is the oldest type of rechargeable battery. Despite having a very low
energy-to-weight ratio and a low energy-to-volume ratio, its ability to supply high
surge currents means that the cells have a relatively large power-to-weight ratio.
These features, along with their low cost, make them attractive for use in motor
vehicles to provide the high current required by motors. This is the Default setting.
AGM –
**AGM (Absorbed Glass Mat) batteries differ from flooded lead acid
batteries in that the electrolyte is held in the glass mats, as opposed to freely
flooding the plates. Very thin glass fibers are woven into a mat to increase surface
area enough to hold sufficient electrolyte on the cells for their lifetime. The fibers
that compose the fine glass mat do not absorb nor are they affected by the acidic
electrolyte.
Gel –
**A modern gel battery (also known as a “gel cell”) is a VRLA (Valve Regulated
Lead Acid) battery with a gelified electrolyte; the sulfuric acid is mixed with fumed
silica, which makes the resulting mass gel-like and immobile. Unlike a flooded
wet-cell lead-acid battery, these batteries do not need to be kept upright. Gel
batteries reduce the electrolyte evaporation, spillage (and subsequent corrosion
problems) common to the wet-cell battery, and boast greater resistance to extreme
temperatures, shock and vibration. Chemically they are almost the same as wet
(non-sealed) batteries except that the antimony in the lead plates is replaced by
calcium, and gas recombination can take place.
Custom –
This is the mode that can be custom programmed via the USB port using
the PowerWizard software on a laptop for almost any type of battery including
Lithium Ion. From the factory, this is profile is not programmed, and is not available
until it is programmed using the PowerWizard software.
Lithium Ion –
***A lithium-ion battery (sometimes Li-ion battery or LIB) is a member
of a family of rechargeable battery types in which lithium ions move from the
negative electrode to the positive electrode during discharge and back when
charging. Nominal cell voltage is 3.6V and a 12V battery consists of 4 cells in series
to create 14.4V. The charging routine is Constant Current (Bulk Charge) to Constant
Voltage (Float) at 14.4 Volts.
* Wikipedia contributors. “Lead–acid battery.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
** Wikipedia contributors. “VRLA battery.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
*** Wikipedia contributors. “Lithium-Ion battery.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia.