Filling Batteries.

[Darren]

Periodically we get batteries in to fill with acid. Typically they come packed 18 per pallet with the battery and the associated 2 gal jug of acid boxed separately but wrapped in cardboard as a unit.

Yesterday we had 44 batteries to fill. Needless to say it takes awhile to pour 2 gals of acid into a battery. My usual routine is to setup a plank on two 55 gal, drums with two of the acid containers stacked at one end. I have a nozzle that looks like a lawn hose sprayer except it's for acid. Each box of acid includes a preassembled hose and cap to replace the regular cap. The idea is to invert the acid jug after cutting off the crimped tubing end and inserting the hose into each cell until all are filled. The nozzle just means I don't have to pinch the hose off by hand to stop the flow of acid. Placing the jug on the two stacked containers provides a bit more pressure to speed up filling the battery on the plank.

As the acid jug empties, the flow slows. What I'd like to do is come up with a tank that would hold maybe 10 gal of acid that I could pressurize to get a faster flow. I don't think I'd need more than 5 psi, if that, to get enough flow to speed the process up.

The key here is finding an acid proof container that I can install bulkhead fittings into and also have a removable lid that when fastened will allow me to slightly pressurize the tank.

Any ideas?

 

[Treemonkey1000]

I would think that maybe one of those clear blueish 5 gallon water jugs that you can buy at the store or on water fountains would work. Install a clear neoprene hose in the base of that with a plastic petcock to turn on and off the flow. If you use a larger diameter hose you would get more volume. Just use gravity and you don't have to worry about pressurizing the jug.

 

[Darren]

I originally thought of buying a 100 gal plastic tank and mounting it on a stand. Since the acid is heavier than water, the manufacturers got a little edgy when I've described the application. The other issue is with a larger tube I can't check the acid level as easily.

Keep in mind, I'm usually working with anywhere from 40 to 88 gals of acid each time. I don't want to refill whatever I'm working with after only a few batteries. Nor do I want something big enough to hold all the acid since that means I have to unpack everything in one shot. For whatever reason, the palletized batteries are unreal. They have multiple layers of cardboard sheet along with die cut card board wrapped around everything. If I do one layer at a time, I only have to deal with 12 gals of acid and six batteries which is probably optimum.

 

[Treemonkey1000]

Wow that is a lot of acid. I have a 55 gallon white plastic drum that is my emergency water supply for when we have a major earthquake here. It is visible enough that you can see the fluid level in it. It was used for vegatable oil or something. You can search for food grade plastic barrels. It would be thick enough if you wanted to pressurize it. I still think that a large enough hose will give you plenty of volume if you can get some height to the barrel

 

[CurlyDave]

I would rather play poker with Atilla the Hun than pressurize any kind of an acid container. What happens when it bursts in your face? What happens when the hose assembly fails for some reason.

I would find a faster way to pour unpressurized acid into each cell. Maybe a plastic measuring cup and a large funnel.

I have B.S. and Ph.D degrees in Chemical Engineering. Do not try a home-made pressurized acid dispenser.

 

[Egon]

Also check with the authorities on the handling of acid and what rules may apply.

 

[jinman]

I would rather play poker with Atilla the Hun than pressurize any kind of an acid container. What happens when it bursts in your face? What happens when the hose assembly fails for some reason.

I would find a faster way to pour unpressurized acid into each cell. Maybe a plastic measuring cup and a large funnel.

I have B.S. and Ph.D degrees in Chemical Engineering. Do not try a home-made pressurized acid dispenser.

I don't have a Chemical Engineering degree, but I agree completely. Many years ago I worked with a geochemist and handled his tripple-distilled reagent grade acids. There was nothing that scared me more, especially when he showed me the scarred back of his hand where he spilled a tiny amount of perchloric acid. Also, always keep acids far away from organic solvents.

If I wanted to speed up a battery filling process, I would look at using a larger hose with a multiple tap adapter that would allow me to fill all the cells at the same time. That would be much safer in my opinion, but would also present a few of its own challenges.

 

[Wayne County Hose]

I would rather play poker with Atilla the Hun than pressurize any kind of an acid container. What happens when it bursts in your face? What happens when the hose assembly fails for some reason.

I would find a faster way to pour unpressurized acid into each cell. Maybe a plastic measuring cup and a large funnel.

I have B.S. and Ph.D degrees in Chemical Engineering. Do not try a home-made pressurized acid dispenser.

I agree with CurlyDave with one exception. I would throw Gengis Khan in there too. Maybe even the grim reaper.

I used to fill batteries the same way for work. I also worked with forklift batteries in excess of 3,000 lbs. A battery acid spill of the proportions you speak would make the nightly news with you in the back of an EPA vehicle handcuffed. Contact the company you get the acid from for a reccomendation.

 

[Bird]

Yep, you can count me among those who agree with CurlyDave, too. I remember when, in the service station and auto parts store, all the auto batteries came dry and we had to add the acid when we sold them. Fortunately, it was only one battery at a time.

 

[alchemysa]

Pressurising the system sounds very dangerous. A little split or a leak somewhere and you'll have an almost uncontrollable spray going everywhere -maybe into your eyes.

Perhaps what you need is a 'set it and leave it' system. Something you can set up so it fills the cells automatically up to a certain level. Then you just have come back later and top them up. Perhaps something like a half dozen 1 pint containers with tubes running into the cells. Pour a pre-measured amount into each container then go and do something else for a while. You could perhaps make a little jig that holds the tubes in the battery, like a block of wood with six holes. I can understand that what you are currently doing is a pain, but whatever alternative you come up with needs to be done right or you'll be in more mess that its worth. .

 

[Soundguy]

I would not pressurize the system. Now.. a tank vent to allow air in as the acid depleats should be fine and keep the flow rate fairly steady.. especially with gravity helping out..

soundguy

 

[Darren]

I appreciate the concern thats been expressed. One of the situations I'm dealing with is that the supplier of the acid went to a cheaper jug about a year ago. I've actually had a cap come off when I was pouring acid into a battery. Excitement is holding a tilted acid jug on top of two stacked boxes, about six foot off the ground, with one hand and holding the nozzle with the other, with acid assisted by gravity doing its thing. Fortunately the nozzle is a dead man design. FWIW, I do wear goggles when filling batteries.

The jugs have two caps opposite each other on the top. The smaller covers the vent which has to be punctured before you can drain the acid. The other is intended to be removed and replaced with a cap with a length of hose attached.

I'm not sure what the specific gravity of battery acid is but it's obviously heavier than water. With my current setup I知 working with a head that gives me about .64 psi with water. With acid It's probably about .8 psi. That's enough pressure to rapidly fill a cell. I'd be happy with a setup that could maintain about 1 psi through a complete fill. We're not talking high pressure.

The more times I have to transfer acid, the more opportuniy I give Murphy. I'd still rather use something like a ten gallon tank that I could just pour the acid into and then dispense. With about 1 psi, I'm not going to get a catastrophic failure. I like the nozzle I'm using. With the dead man feature it's simple to stop the flow as compared to a valve of some sort. I can set the tank in another container to catch leaks. I still need suggestions for a tank source and appropriate bulkhead fitting. I also need a gauge that will indicate low pressures accurately.

 

[em14]

If I were doing the filling and looking for a better and quicker method to use I would be talking to some Chemical Suppliers and asking for advice there!
Leo

 

[bucmeister]

From all you have described my suggestion would be to find a way to elevate the acid container higher above the batteries. With water you get a static pressure increase or .44 psi per foot of column so a 50' length of tubing hung straight down would/should register about 22 psi at the bottom, your heavier acid would have more pressur than that. So if you got your 10 gal jug and put it 5' higher than the top of the battery you should in theory have 2-3 psi at the outlet. Another help would be to have a large dia tube for the first 4 to 4.5 feet then choke it down after the (hopefully) installed shutoff valve.

 

[GOLDBERG]

We fill batteries at work from a 30 gal drum. I don't know where they get it from but it works using compressed air to siphon the acid. works really quick.

 

[Soundguy]

Big difference in a compressed air run syphon, and a pressure expelled fluid..

The syphon method won't explode the tank if a problem occurs.

soundguy

 

[Darren]

I've seen compressed air driven drum pumps. From what you're saying someone makes one that is designed for acid. That would work. I could use a 55 gal plastic drum as a reservoir.

 

[Egon]

Maybe the easiest solution would be to check with the acid suppliers and find out about the dispensing systems.

 

[Darren]

The acid supplier would probably have a heart attack. The acid is packaged in a box within a box. You're not supposed to remove the jug from the inner box. One of the changes they made was to redesign the jug to eliminate the handle. The thing that looks somewhat like a handle isn't sufficient to get a good grip.

the setups that I've seen look like a workbench with a shelf to hold the boxed acid. My current setup is a makeshift version.

I checked on air driven drum pumps for acid service .... $800 to $2600. Using an elevated tank to get the higher head pressure will take up shop space which is in short supply. One of the problems is dedicating a space for something like that.

From week to week we never know what's coming in. The 44 batteries should be enough for three months. The folks that send us batteries also send us as many as 50 - 60 11.00R24 tires to either dismount or mount plus we get the entire axles from 6x6 trucks for service. The tires (three piece rims) are assembled flat on the floor. All in all, we'd be better off with a battery fill setup that can be assembled or dissasembled quickly.

 

[Treemonkey1000]

Do you have a forklift there where you can lift the drum or tank to get the height for a good flow? Just lift it up when you want to fill the batteries and then lower back and store it when you are done.