The car battery is a very useful component. Starting system, it can start the engine with just a button. And the starting system works electronically, so it requires electrical energy from the battery.
If the battery is dead, the starting system cannot function. That keeps the engine from starting via the starter feature, and you need to pull the vehicle to start the engine.
The problem is, the dead battery issue is almost experienced by car owners.
The question is, can the dead battery be recharge by driving the vehicle? isn't a car has a charging system?
It is the right thing, that every vehicle has a charging system. And the function of the charging system is to recharge the battery.
But the problem is, the alternator needs voltage to create magnetism. If the battery voltage is empty, the alternator cannot generate electricity.
To be clearer I will explain this in detail.
Battery Charging Process in Vehicle
So the charging system uses an alternator to convert rotational energy into electrical energy. Just like any other generator, the alternator uses a coil and a magnetic field. But in the alternator, the magnetic field is not obtained from the permanent magnet but from the coil.
So that the alternator needs a little voltage to produce a magnetic field. When a magnetic field is formed even though it is very small, the alternator can generate electricity. The electricity produced will increase the magnetic field in the alternator, so that the output voltage is greater.
In this condition, the alternator can be used to recharge the battery.
So whether a dead battery can be recharge by the alternator?
It depends on the battery. If the battery has no voltage (0 Volt) then the alternator cannot generate magnetism, so electricity cannot be generated.
However, if the battery still has a small voltage, you only need to start the engine. The trick is to push the car until the engine starts. Then the alternator will recharge the battery. When recharging, you can leave the car idle, or you want to drive the car faster.
With a higher RPM, the resulting voltage output is also greater. So that it charges the battery faster.
To find out whether the battery still has remaining voltage, you can turn on the headlamp or horn. If it's still working even though it's not maximal, then the battery still has voltage.
But if that doesn't work, then the battery has no residual voltage.
Then what is the solution for a battery that has no residual voltage?
First you have to find out, whether the battery is just losing voltage, or if the battery electrolytes are low.
If the battery only loses voltage, the electrolyte can still store electrical energy. So that the battery can be recharged by the alternator.
you just need to find the way to turn on the engine. One of the way, using battery jump start technique. This technique will be explained below.
But if the battery electrolyte is weak, then the electrolyte cannot store large amounts of electrical energy. If this is the case, then the alternator can still recharge the battery, but this is useless. Because the energy stored in the battery cannot be used to power the starter system.
When the battery electrolyte is low, the most effective solution is to replace the battery.
Jump a car battery with another battery
This is a method to start the engine with low voltage battery conditions. You only need to connect your car battery to the battery in another car in parallel, then the starter system will turn on.
This method is easier because you don't have to push the car to start it. so it is very useful when your car battery don't have any residual voltage.
But the same, when the battery electrolyte is low, this will not have an impact in the future. Later, the battery returns to low even though the engine has been running for a long time.
So in conclusion, every car has a charging system. It will work automatically when the engine starts. Low voltage battery is mostly experienced in vehicles that have not been used for a long time. By starting the engine and using it to drive around, the battery charging system runs faster.
So you can recharge the battery with just a drive around.