CERTAIN NEW AND USEFUL IMPROVE- MENTS IN SECONDARY BATTERIES ACTING AS ACCUMULATORS OF ELECTRICITY
Year: 1886

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Acting as Accumulators of Electricity.
We, EDMOND COMMELIN, and GABRIEL BAILHACHE, Engineers, CAMILLE DESMA-
ZURES, Gentleman, ALEXANDRE LEBRUN DE VIRLOY, Engineer, and LEOPOLD DE
BOUSIGNAC, Gentleman, all of 8, rue de la Chaussée d'Antin, Paris, France do hereby
declare the nature of our said invention for CERTAIN NEW AND USEFUL IMPROVE-
MENTS IN SECONDARY BATTERIES ACTING AS ACCUMULATORS OF ELECTRICITY to be
as follows:-
The invention relates to an improved secondary battery acting as an accumulator
of electricity. This improved secondary battery consists as follows:
1st of a positive pole consisting of spongy or porous copper plates, or of spongy
or porous plates of other metals insoluble or only slightly soluble in soda or
potash.
The metals are brought to a spongy state in various ways, for instance by
electrolytic or chemical precipitation followed by compression in a mould; by
amalgamation and subsequent evaporation of the mercury; by mixture with
hydro-carburets or sugary matters which are afterwards evaporated and decomposed
by heat, etc.
2nd of a negative pole consisting of plates or wire gauze of copper, brass, zinc,
or iron galvanized with zinc, the whole amalgamated or not amalgamated.
3rd of an, electrolytic bath, i.e. a liquid in which the plates are immersed, con-
sisting of an aqueous solution of an alkaline salt with a metallic or oxy-metallic
acid, or metallic oxyde acting as an acid, such for instance as the stannate of soda
or potash etc.
°
4th of a sheet iron or steel receiving vessel of suitable shape and dimensions
made proof against alkalis and acids by a coat of bituminous matter or a solution
of india rubber.

page_text: Acting as Accumulators of Electricity.
We, EDMOND COMMELIN, GABRIEL BAILHACHE, Engineers, CAMILLE DESMAZURES,
Gentleman ALEXANDRE LEBRUN DE VIRLOY, Engineer and LEOPOLD DE BOUSIGNAC,
Gentleman, all of 8, rue de la Chaussée d'Antin, Paris, France do hereby declare
the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to
be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
.
This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in secondary
batteries acting as accumulators of electricity. The positive pole consists of spongy
.or porous copper plates, or of spongy or porous plates of other metals insoluble or
only slightly soluble in soda or potash.
These spongy or porous plates may be made in various ways, with copper, for
instance, and more especially as follows: either by making an amalgam of mercury
with copper, chemically or electrolytically precipitated, or treated in any other
suitable manner to obtain the maximum of division. This amalgam is shut up
and compressed in a special mould. of the size of the plates; it is then heated to
the degree requisite for evaporating the mercury. Or these plates may be made
by mixing oxyd of copper in a pasty state, with tar and other hydrocarburets, and
even with sugary matters, treacle, glucose, &c., and then closing and compressing
it in the plate mould, which is then brought to a red heat. The tars, hydro-
carburets, and sugary matters reducing the oxyd to a metallic state, become partly
volatilized and partly transformed into coke or charred matters which may after-
wards be burned out by chlorate of soda or of potash. Or they may be made by
forming, under great pressure, the plates with copper, chemically or electrolytically
precipitated, or treated in any other suitable manner to obtain the maximum of
division, or again by mixing these coppers with oxyd of copper, and even by using
-oxyd of copper alone, which is afterwards reduced to a metallic state by means of
a current of hydrogen with a suitable temperature.
In order to construct (by the above or any other method) strong plates which
shall at the same time be thin, a piece of wire gauze of the same metal is inserted
in the middle of the plate, or the object may be attained by merely placing a few
wires laid across each other in the middle of the plate.
The object in view is to make the plates as spongy and as little dense as possible
combined with great strength, and to make them of such a thickness that the
oxygen and hydrogen gases which are formed, the former during the charge of the
accumulator, and the latter during its discharge, may lodge upon them and be
absorbed as fast as they are formed.
The spongy copper plates are wrapped in parchment paper or stiff canvas, so as
to prevent the solution of copper which might result from this process from per-
meating the alkaline liquid.
The negative pole consists of brass plates, perforated or not, amalgamated or
not, often wrapped in gauze of brass wire amalgamated or not, or even of gauze

page_text: of brass wire alone, amalgamated or not. It may also consist as aforesaid, of metal
plates and wire gauze, and even of copper, zinc, or tinned or galvanized iron wire,
the whole amalgamated or not amalgamated.
Finally, we separate the negative plates, alternating with the positive plates, by
strips or ribs of glass or other insulating material, fastened and bound together in
such manner as to maintain the plates at equal distances from each other.
As an electrolyte we use an aqueous solution of an alkaline salt with a metallic
acid or a metallic oxyd acting as an acid, such for instance as zincate of soda, and
we mix in the same a quarter to a third of chlorate of soda. The principal effect
of this mixture is, with the addition of a current of suitable electric charge, to
increase the electro-motive force, to prevent the production of a flocky and floating
zinc, and to obtain on the plates of the negative pole, notwithstanding their
vertical position, a deposit of adherent zinc. We construct a receiving jar of
suitable shape and dimensions of sheet iron or steel and make it proof against
alkalis and acids by coating it with a solution of india rubber or a suitable bitu-
minous material. The receiving jar may also be constructed of galvanized or
tinned sheet iron, in which case the amalgamated or non amalgamated sides of the
jar may be utilized as negative plates.
Finally we arrange the plates in a special manner, viz: we place them horizon-
tally in such a manner that each positive plate is immediately above its corre-
sponding negative plate, the latter being intended to receive all or part of the
metallic deposits of the electrolyte. The plates may also be inclined in any way;
the positive or negative plates, as also the jars, may be of any desired shape.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:
1. The improvements in secondary batteries acting as accumulators of electricity
as above described.
2. The use, at the positive pole, of very thin spongy plates of copper or other
metals, insoluble or only slightly soluble in soda or potash.
3. The use, at the negative pole, of sheet iron plates, and wire and wire gauze of
brass, copper, zinc, galvanized or tinned iron, amalgamated or not amalgamated.
4. The use, as an electrolyte, of an aqueous solution of an alkaline salt with
a metallic acid or metallic oxyd acting as an acid, with the addition of about a
quarter or a third of chlorate of soda, and even without such addition.
5. The use of a receiving jar of sheet iron or steel, made proof against alkalis
and acids by a coating of a suitable bituminous substance, or of a solution of india
rubber or gutta percha, and the use of a receiving jar made of galvanized or tinned
sheet iron, the amalgamated or not amalgamated sides of which may be utilized as
negative plates.
6. The special arrangement of the plates; such arrangement consisting in placing
them horizontally in such manner that each positive plate shall be immediately
above its corresponding negative plate, which latter is intended to collect all or
part of the metallic deposits of the electrolyte.