>--> RV-List message posted by: Flyinghi@worldnet.att.net
>
>Is anyone familiar with the Black Panther dry cell battery collection?
>They have a website at blackpanther.com and after haven seen the batteries,
>they seem very interesting. The advantages of a dry cell battery seems
>extremely favorable to me for aviation and the weights they post are very
>respectable. Anyone have experience with these?
Just visited their website. They're offering a lead-acid, recombinant
gas battery not unlike the Concord RG series or B&C batteries. This
technology is becoming quite commonplace and IMHO is the ONLY kind
of battery to use in an airplane. There are DOZENS of other manufacturers
out there offering similar technologies . . . virtually all manufacturers
of un-interuptable power supply batteries now offer RG technology. "Gel"
cells and flooded batteries are fading fast and I'm not sorry to see them
go.
Blackpanther takes a whack at Optima batteries which is only slightly
justified . . . the stacked flat-plate designe does give one a slight
edge on watt-hours per cubic inch. The Optima battery is a carry over
---From the ORIGINAL recombinant gas battery production by Gates from some
15 years ago. The patents have expired on this technology so lots of
folks are getting into the act. Gates was having mechanical troubles
with the "jelly-roll" cells when B&C was offering them to amateur airplane
builders 10 years ago . . had to give them up. When Gates went to the
stack-of-flat-plates design, they sold their tooling to Optima who now
seems to have whipped the mechanical problems of years past.
Looking at the Black Panther ad . . .
Superior volumetric and gravimetric power density, offering
more power in less space and weight
Ultra-high-rate discharge capability
Ultra-low internal resistance, allowing superior terminal
voltage characteristics under fast rate discharges
Under normal charging conditions, out-gassing is negligible.
True of all RG products. Actually out-gassing is usually
ZERO.
Gases are fully contained and recombined within the battery,
making it safe for installation in human environments, such as
inside the passenger compartment (under the seat).
RG batteries were VERY popular with the computer IPS
builders . . . secretaries get really tense when foul
fumes fill the office . . . or acid drips onto the carpet.
100% maintenance free copper/alloy terminals, making a true
fit-and-forget battery
Advanced manufacturing techniques, insuring high reliability
and consistency
True of most RG batteries . . . the technology is a proven
concept. Problems with these batteries are generally
attributable to manufacturing defects (still a LOT of
hand assembly for most manufacturers).
Use of very high purity lead grid (99.994%), translating into longer life
VERY important . . . don't know about Concord but the battery
B&C sells starts out with NEW lead. However, I've heard that
metals recycling folk are getting better all the time with
cleaning up OLD lead.
Flame-retardent case and cover material, featuring an LOI> 28 and meeting
UL94-VO requirements.
Superior fast recharge capability, allowing 95%+ recharge in less than
30 minutes from 100% state of discharge
Can be mounted in any orientation. Battery may be installed and operated
in any direction, allowing greater flexibility in product design and
use, due to the sealed, non-spillable construction, making it safe and
approved by the USDOT for air transportation shipping worldwide
True of every RG battery.
Wide operating temperature range. Black Panther can handle the cold and
heat, from -40o to +60oC Safety, All Black Panther product is UL recognized,
as a component per UL standard 924 and 1778 Environmentally friendly;
easily recyclable
Nothing really outstanding here . . . but feel free to explore their
range of products from a viewpoint of economics and installability.
BTW . . . these are not "dry" batteries . . . their electrolyte
is liquid water-sulphuric acid. It happens to be totally contained
in not quite saturated separators. You can poke a hole in one and it
won't leak but you can wring liquid out of a separator.
I do note that the Black Panther battery is optimized for deep cycle
service and claims 400+ cycles of endurance. This is a little misleading.
ALL batteries begin a slide in capacity due to deep cycling immediately
upon placement in service. Batteries designed for cranking (it only takes
1-2% of the battery capacity to start an engine) are generally good
for 75-100 "deep cycles" (full charge down to 10% and back) before the
full-charge value drops to 80% of original capacity. Depending on
where Black Panther wants to call "end of life", their number of
charge-discharge cycles can vary widely. For airplanes this is
not especially important . . . 99.99% of the time all you need a battery
to do is crank the engine. If you don't regularly deep cycle the
battery (your alternator craps out every third flight or so) then
the deep-cycle feature is not a compelling feature for purchasing
Black Panther over any other battery.
For more information on the RG batteries, see:
<http://www.aeroelectric.com/nojuice.html>
<http://www.aeroelectric.com/rg_bat.html>
Bob . . .
AeroElectric Connection
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