Theoretical Electrical ?

[boscoe99]

If a battery (lithium, AGM lead acid, gel lead acid, flooded lead acid) is being provided with a source of electrical power, say at a constant 14.5 volts, does it matter to the battery where that power comes from?

Thinking of the output from a DC generator, a belt alternator, a flywheel alternator, a 120 volt automotive battery charger, a specialized marine battery charger, a 120 volt power supply, solar cells, etc..

Assumption being that the battery is not fully charged and that when it is fully charged the power supply will be disconnected.

If it matters, how so? Just looking for thoughts. Cold, wet and rainy today.

[99yam40]

I would think it might matter how clean of a DC voltage it was.

I would think a nice clean smooth supply would not matter
the smoother the better
the spikes might be bad
but some do not like too fast of a charge also

I have no idea how longativity of a battery would be affected, but I know some instrumentation hooked to a battery system with un clean power (a bad cap) will do strange things

[ausnoelm]

If everything was equal, as in all charging methods were the same output, then it would make no difference, as long as the battery is disconnected when charged, then how that charge is supplied is irrelevant.

[zenoahphobic]

Look at smart chargers.
A battery doesn’t need a clean or smooth supply at all to charge.
A constant, whatever, charge voltage doesn’t fully charge a battery, however pulsing gets nearer to the objective.
I guess it is just electrons are pushed back in the reversing of the chemical reaction that made the electrons flow from the negative terminal back to the positive terminal in the first place. And every battery tends to be unique for various reasons. Time and temperature are also factors.
What tends to be true is that a battery discharges quicker than it charges. Every movement of electrons (backwards or forwards) changes the capacity or “wears out” the battery.