AMENDED CLAIMS

received by the International Bureau on 07 August 2018 (07.08.2018)

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A lead-acid battery separator assembly comprising:

a separator layer;

a nonwoven fibrous mat;

said fibrous mat being disposed adjacent to said separator layer; and

wherein said fibrous mat has: an electrical resistance in the range of approximately 6 mQ-cm² to approximately 14 mQ'cm², an average pore size of less than about 5 μηι, and an air permeability in the range of approximately 1500 l/m²s to approximately 2500 l/m²s.

2. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1 wherein said separator layer and fibrous mat are larninated together.

3. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said fibrous mat has a thickness of between about 200 μηι to 450 μηα.

4. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said fibrous mat has an electrical resistance less than approximately 11 mQxm².

5. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said fibrous mat has an area weight in the range of approximately 50 g/m² to approximately 65 g/m².

6. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said fibrous mat has a preferred binder content in the range of approximately 15% by weight to approximately 21% weight.

7. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said fibrous mat has tensile strength in the machine direction of approximately 200 N/50mm.

8. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said fibrous mat has tensile strength in the cross-machine direction of approximately 150 N/50mm.

9. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said fibrous mat comprises a synthetic fiber diameter of approximately 7.2 μηι.

10. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said fibrous mat comprises fibers selected from the group consisting of: glass fibers, synthetic fibers, and combinations thereof.

11. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 10, wherein said synthetic fibers are selected from the group consisting of: polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, acrylic, other plastics, polymer, homopolymer, copolymer, and any combination thereof.

12. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said fibrous mat comprises an additive selected from the group consisting of: rubber, silica, soluble fibers, a gelling agent, a surfactant, and combinations thereof.

13. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 12, wherein said additive is selected from the group consisting of: applied as a coating, impregnated into said fibrous mat, dispersed within said fibrous mat, added in the manufacture of said porous membrane, and any combination thereof.

14. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said separator layer and said fibrous mat are leaves.

15. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said separator layer and said fibrous mat are sleeves.

16. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said separator layer and said fibrous mat are envelopes.

17. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 16, wherein said envelopes are hybrid envelopes.

18. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1,

wherein said separator layer is a microporous membrane;

wherein said separator layer comprises polyethylene, preferably, ultrahigh moleculat weight polyethylene, a particle-like filler, and a processing plasticizer;

wherein said separator layer comprises the particle-like filler in an amount of 40% of more by weight of said separator layer; and

wherein said polyethylene comprises polymer in a shish-kebab formation comprising a plurality of extended chain crystals (the shish formations) and a plurality of folded chain crystals (the kebab formations) and wherein the average repetition or periodicity of the kebab formations is from 1 nm to 150 nm.

19. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 18, wherein said filler is selected from the group consisting of: silica, precipitated silica, fumed silica, and precipitated amorphous silica, and any combination thereof; and wherein the molecular ratio of OH to Si groups within said filler, measured by ²⁹Si-NMR, is within a range of from approximately 21:100 to 27:100 or more.

20. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 18, wherein said microporous membrane has a porosity greater than approximately 64%.

21. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 18, wherein said processing plasticizer is selected from the group consisting of: processing oil, paraffin-based mineral oil, mineral oil, and any combination thereof.

22. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 18, wherein said particle-like filler is present at the kebab formations of the polymer.

23. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said separator layer is selected from the group consisting of: polyolefin, polyethylene, polypropylene, rubber, polyvinyl chloride, phenolic resins, cellulosic, synthetic wood pulp, glass fibers, synthetic fibers, and combinations thereof.

24. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said separator layer comprises one from the group consisting of: a filler, a surfactant, and combinations thereof.

25. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 13, wherein said surfactant is selected from the group consisting of: a non-ionic surfactant, an ionic surfactant, and an anionic surfactant.

26. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said separator layer comprises one from the group consisting of: ribs, broken ribs, serrated ribs, embattlemented ribs, embossed ribs, negative cross ribs, and any combination thereof.

27. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said separator layer comprises a plurahty of broken ribs, wherein said plurality of broken ribs are defined by an angular orientation.

28. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 27, wherein said angular orientation is relative to a machine direction of said separator layer, and said angular orientation is an angle chosen from the group consisting of: between greater than zero degrees (0°) and less than 180 degrees (180°), and between greater than 180 degrees (180°) and less than 360 degrees (360°).

29. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 25, wherein said separator layer comprises one or more sets of ribs witihin said plurality of broken ribs; wherein a first set of ribs within said one or more sets of ribs have a first angular orientation; and wherein a second set of ribs within said one or more sets of ribs have a second angular orientation.

30. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said separator layer comprises a rubber.

31. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 30, wherein said rubber is selected from the group consisting of: latex, methyl rubber, polybutadiene, chloropene rubbers, butyl rubber, bromobutyl rubber, polyurethane rubber, epichlorhydrin rubber, polysulphide rubber, chlorosulphonyl polyethylene, polynorbornene rubber, acrylate rubber, fluorine rubber, silicone rubber, copolymer rubbers, and combinations thereof.

32. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 31, wherein said copolymer rubbers is selected from the group consisting of: styrene/butadiene rubbers, acrylonitrile/butadiene rubbers, ethylene/polypropylene rubbers (EPM and EPDM), ethylene/vinyl acetate rubbers, and combinations thereof.

33. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 30, wherein said rubber is cross- linked or uncross-linked.

34. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 30, wherein said rubber is coated on at least one face of said separator layer.

35. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 30, wherein said rubber is impregnated into said separator layer.

36. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 30, wherein said rubber is blended with a polymer used to form the separator layer.

37. A lead-acid battery comprising the lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1.

38. The lead-acid battery of claim 37, wherein said battery comprises an alternating series of positive electrodes and negative electrodes; wherein said positive electrodes comprise an active material.

39. The lead-acid battery of claim 38, wherein said separator layer and said fibrous mat are interleafed between said positive electrodes and negative electrodes.

40. The lead-acid battery of claim 38, wherein said separator layer and said fibrous mat are an envelope that envelopes said positive electrodes.

41. The lead-acid battery of claim 40, wherein said envelope is a hybrid envelope.

42. The lead-acid battery of claim 39, wherein said separator layer and said fibrous mat are laminated as a single unit.

43. The lead-acid battery of claim 39, wherein said separator layer and said fibrous mat are adjacent to one another.

44. The lead-acid battery of claim 39, wherein said fibrous mat is positioned between said separator layer and said positive electrode.

45. The lead-acid battery of claim 39, wherein said fibrous mat is compresses against said active material.

46. The lead-acid battery of claim 39, wherein said fibrous mat is incorporated in said active material.

47. The lead-acid battery of claim 39, wherein said fibrous mat is incorporated in a pasting paper.

48. The lead-acid battery of claim 37, wherein said fibrous mat has an average pore size that is smaller than the average grain size of said active material.

49. The lead-acid battery of claim 37, wherein said battery is chosen from the group consisting of a tubular battery, a flat-plate battery, a golf cart battery, an inverter battery, an SLI battery, a flooded lead acid battery, a deep-cycle battery, and a battery operating in a partial state of charge.

50. A vehicle comprising the lead-acid battery of claim 37.

51. The vehicle of claim 50, wherein said vehicle is chosen from the group consisting of an automobile, a truck, a forklift, a golf cart, an e-rickshaw, and a hybrid-electric vehicle (KEY).

52. The vehicle of claim 50, wherein said vehicle is subject to a motion characterized by a stop-start motion.

53. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said fibrous mat has a thickness of approximately 0.3 mm.

54. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said fibrous mat has a thickness of approximately 0.2 mm.

55. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said fibrous mat has a thickness of approximately 0.4 mm.

56. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 1, wherein said fibrous mat has a thickness of approximately 0.1 to approximately 0.5 mm.

57. A lead-acid battery separator comprising:

a porous membrane;

a nonwoven fibrous mat;

said fibrous mat being disposed adjacent to said porous membrane; and

wherein said fibrous mat has: an electrical resistance in the range of approximately 6 mQ-cm² to approximately 14 ηιΩ·αη², an average pore size of less than about 5 μηι, and an air permeability in the range of approximately 1500 l/m²s to approximately 2500 l/m²s.

58. A lead-acid battery separator assembly comprising:

a separator layer;

a nonwoven fibrous mat;

said fibrous mat being disposed adjacent to said separator layer;

wherein said fibrous mat has: an electrical resistance in the range of approximately 6 mQ-cm² to approximately 14 ηιΩ·αη², and an average pore size of less than about 5 μπι; and,

wherein said separator layer comprises a rubber.

59. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 58, wherein said rubber is selected from the group consisting of: latex, methyl rubber, polybutadiene, chloropene rubbers, butyl rubber, brotnobutyl rubber, polyurethane rubber, epiclilorhydrin rubber, polysulphide rubber, chlorosulphonyl polyethylene, polynorbornene rubber, acrylate rubber, fluorine rubber, silicone rubber, copolymer rubbers, and combinations thereof.

60. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 59, wherein said copolymer rubbers is selected from the group consisting of: styrene/butadiene rubbers, acrylonitrile/butadiene rubbers, ethylene/polypropylene rubbers (EPM and EPDM), ethylene/vinyl acetate rubbers, and combinations thereof.

61. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 58, wherein said rubber is cross- linked or uncross-linked.

62. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 58, wherein said rubber is coated on at least one face of said separator layer.

63. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 58, wherein said rubber is impregnated into said separator layer.

64. The lead-acid battery separator assembly of claim 58, wherein said rubber is blended with a polymer used to form the separator layer.