On Tuesday, March 27, 2012 4:59:07 AM UTC-7, klem kedidelhopper wrote:
I'm having a discussion on another group with someone about battery
charging. I often charge my batteries including automotive off my
bench power supply. He was telling me that smooth regulated DC is not
the best thing to use for charging batteries. He said that half wave
rectified unfiltered DC will prevent the growth of "dentrites" that
can eventually extend and short out the plates. This is the first I've
ever heard of this. Does anyone have any further insight on this? Lenny

Gee, does he mean that for all the years that cars used generators they were doing it wrong? Even alternators are 3 phase so the 'ripple' on the DC output is relatively much smaller than a 1/2 wave rectified output.
Solar charging is also pretty much pure DC.
One charging method I have heard of that does make some sense is to charge for, say, 10 minutes and then discharge at the same rate for, say, 30 seconds then a short rest then charging again. I do not know if this has any benefit, but it does waste energy.

Neil S