Rolls Surrette User Manual

38
SPECIFIC GRAVITY
The density of a material, expressed as the ratio of the mass of a given
volume of the material and the mass of the same volume of water; a specific
gravity greater than 1 means heavier than water, less than 1 means lighter
than water. The specific gravity of the electrolyte in a battery can be used
to measure the state of charge of the battery.
SULFATION
Even though lead sulfate is created in the materials of plates during normal
discharging, this term is used to describe the generation of a different form
(large crystals) of lead sulfate which will not readily convert back to normal
material when the battery is charged. Sulfation occurs when a battery is
stored too long in a discharged condition, if it is never fully charged, or if
electrolyte has become abnormally low due to excessive water loss from
overcharging and/or evaporation.
VOLT
The unit of measurement of electrical potential or “pressure”.
Most batteries come in 2, 4, 6, 8 or 12 volt configurations.