Lead Oxide

Red lead (Pb3O4), black oxide, grey oxide, lead monoxide, litharge (PbO), lead tetrooxide is known as lead oxide. It is mixture of 70 percent lead monoxide and 30 percent metallic lead. In manufacturing of lead acid storage batteries, black lead is needed. Lead monoxide is the most important commercial compound of lead. Industry of lead acid battery is very vast.

Ceramic products are manufactured using Litharge. Due to its electronic and electrical properties litharge is used in the manufacturing of capacitors, ferromagnetic and ferroelectric materials, Vidicon® tubes and electro photographic plates. Litharge has an important role in rubber manufacturing. It is used as an activator in rubber, an oxidation catalyst in several organic chemical processes, a curing agent in elastomers, a sulfur removal agent in the production of thioles and in oil refining industry. Moreover, litharge is used in the production of many lead chemicals, soaps (lead stearate), dry colors and driers for paint. At last the main use of litharge is to produce lead salts used as stabilizers for plastics such as polyvinyl chloride materials.

The major lead pigment is red lead (Pb3O4), which is used principally in ferrous metal protective paints. White lead and lead chromates are the other lead pigments. White lead has several industrial varieties in which basic lead silicates, basic sulfate white, basic carbonate white lead, leaded zinc oxide and leaded zinc are included. Of the all, leaded zinc oxide is the most important one.

Below are some main applications of Lead Oxides

Lead oxide in batteries: Using lead oxide in batteries is the most important application of lead oxide. Further oxides can be classified into three prominent batteries.

SLI (starting, lighting, and ignition): The use of Lead Oxide is increasing day by day. The vehicle which has Lead Acid Battery uses 5 to 10 kilogram of Lead Oxide.

 

Traction batteries: These kinds of batteries are used mostly in electrical vehicle such as golf carts, milk floats, fork lift trucks. Red lead (Pb3O4) is required to design multiple charge-discharge cycles.

Stationary batteries: Power failure is a very common matter of today. There is required a stand-by power application that provides power in the case of main power failure. Again red lead (Pb3O4) is used in manufacturing of stand-by power program.

Lead oxide as pigments: The major Lead pigment is red Lead (Pb3O4), which is used principally in ferrous metal protective paints Litharge -a bright yellow form of Lead monoxide still finds applications in the production of yellow pigments.

Lead oxide in glass: Lead oxide is used to enhance the quality of glass. Leaded glass can contain 24 to 28% lead oxide. It gives density and clarity to the glass. To absorb harmful radiation, 5 to 8 kg of lead oxide is used in television. For enhancing the refractive index, lead oxide is used in optical glasses. In addition, Lead Oxide is used in special optical glasses, x-ray protection, etc.

Lead oxide in ceramics: Enamels and glazes are produced using lead oxides. To enhance the thermal and color properties, lead oxide is being used.

Lead oxide in PVC: Lead oxide is used as Lead stabilisers in PVC processing. The Lead stabilisers improve the thermal stability of PVC, allowing high temperature processing as well as improving the electrical and UV resistance properties. Ducting, pipe work, window profiles, cable sheathing are some examples of common PVC applications.