From the Rolls-Royce experimental archive: a quarter of a million communications from Rolls-Royce, 1906 to 1960's. Documents from the Sir Henry Royce Memorial Foundation (SHRMF).
Letter detailing the results and investigation following a 10,000-mile test on a 6 BXE4 Type Chloride Battery.
| Identifier | WestWitteringFiles\D\April1920\ Scan11 | |
| Date | 20th April 1920 | |
| R.R. & B. 322 (100 T.) J.B.(?) 8-12 c. 3120 EFC3/T. 20th April, 1920. The Chloride Elec: Storage Co.Ltd., Clifton Junction, Nr. Manchester. Dear Sirs, X.3619 (crossed out) Re 6 BXE4 Type Chloride Battery X.604 X.3644 on 10,000 Mile Test. As explained to your Mr. Greenhalgh during his visit to our works recently, the 10,000 mile test of our experimental car with the 6 BXE 4 type Chloride battery on the footboard was completed a little while back and we have now made an investigation of the condition of this battery subsequent to that test. This battery behaved well for 7,000 miles of this test, no trouble being experienced and no attention being needed to the battery beyond the occasional filling up with distilled water. At 7,000 miles, however, one cell failed and the driver, making use of the bolted connections, removed this cell to the end of the battery and carried on with the remaining five cells satisfactorily until the end of the test. After the battery was removed from the car and brought to our test shop, we proceeded in the first instance to charge the whole battery at a comparatively low rate, our idea being to see for ourselves the condition of each individual cell. We found that two cells, including the one which had previously failed, would not attain their normal voltages, whereas the other four cells charged up in a normal way. We therefore removed these two cells and removed the blocks of plates from their cases. We found that in each case, owing to buckling, the positive and negative plates had come together in one place in each case and "shorted", as distinct signs of burning at the point of contact are visible. To explain the possibility of this, we must say that the wooden separators do not in every case extend beyond the plates but in some cases they may be short by as much as 1/8", and the buckling which has taken place Contd. | ||