Some factors affecting sulphur electrode operation in sodium/sulphur cells

✍ Scribed by F.G.R. Zobel

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 1978
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 580 KB
• Volume: 3
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0378-7753
• DOI: 10.1016/0378-7753(78)80003-2

✦ Synopsis

When sodium-sulphur cells are subjected to repeated charge/discharge cycles at a relatively high constant current density (100 mA/cm 2 ) a considerable variation in charge acceptance can be obtained. This contrasts sharply with the cycling behaviour at constant voltage. The reasons for this are not yet clear, but several factors have emerged which profoundly affect sulphur electrode performance.

Four types of cycling behaviour have been identified: (1) near theoretical behaviour when the cell resistance changes very little with cycling; (2) the cell resistance increases with cycling over the whole range of charge and discharge without appreciable loss of capacity; (3) the cell resistance increases with cycling only in the two phase region during recharge, accompanied by loss of charge acceptance; (4) a large increase in resistance at the start of the discharge cycle accompanied by various recharge behaviours. Experiments using flat plate cells which demonstrate the differing characteristics will be described, and some of the reasons for these differences will be discussed.