Automotive lead/acid battery separators: a global overview

This paper describes the present status and the future trends for separators for automotive lead/acid batteries. During the past decade, the design of modern automotive batteries has undergone a fundamental change. Whereas in 1980 almost all batteries used leaf separators, nowadays already two-thirds of the batteries produced worldwide have microporous polyethylene pocket separators. The extent of this conversion is quantified for the geographical regions. The impetus behind the change, as well as the future development trends, are outlined.