Battery definitions

CCA Rate
CCA stands for the "cold cranking amperes". It refers to the number of amperes a battery can support for 30 seconds
0F until the battery voltage drops to 1.20 volts per cell, or 7.20 volts for a 12V battery. If a 12V battery has a rating of
600 CCA that battery will provide 600 amperes for 30 seconds at 0F before the voltage falls to 7.20V.
MCA Rate
MCA stands for the "marine cranking ampere". It refers to the number of amperes a battery can support for 30 seconds
at 32F until the battery voltage drops to 1.20 volts per cell, or 7.20 volts for a 12V battery. A 12V battery that has a MCA
rating of 600 CCA tells us that the battery will provide 600 amperes for 30 seconds at 32F before the voltage falls to
7.20V.
Sometimes MCA referred to as the cranking amperes or CA.
What is the difference between CCA and MCA?
MCA is very similar to the CCA - the only difference is that the CCA is measured at a temperature of 0F and the MCA is
measured at 32F. Everything else are the same the amp draw is for 30 seconds and the end of discharge voltage in
both cases is 1.20 volts per cell.
HCA Rate
HCA is hot cranking amperes. It is the same thing as the MCA or the CA or the CCA, except that the temperature is 80F.
PHCA Rate
No official definition, but battery manufacturers regard the PHCA as a very short duration (typically about 3 -
5seconds) high rate discharge. This discharge is more like a pulse because of its short duration.
Ah or Ampere Hours
The ampere-hour (Ah) rating tell s you the capacity of a battery. A battery that is rated at 100Ah at the 10 hour rate of
discharge is capable of delivering 10A for 10 hours before the terminal voltage drops to a standard value such as 1.67
volts per cell, or 10.02 volts for a 12V battery. Similarly, a 50Ah battery would supply a 5A load for 10 hours.
Reserve Capacity
A. The reserve capacity of a battery is the number of minutes that a battery can support a 25 ampere load at 80F until
its terminal voltage drops to 1.75 volts per cell or 10.50 volts for a 12V battery. A 12V battery that has a reserve capacity
rating of 100 shows that it can be discharged at 25 amps for 100 minutes at 80F before its voltage drops to 10.75 volts.
AGM Battery
Absorbed Glass Mat there is no free acid in an AGM battery . The acid absorbed in the glass mat separators. These
separators serve to keep the positive and negative plates apart. This prevents acids spills in the event of a battery case
leak
Deep Cycle
A deep-cycle battery is designed to be regularly discharged to most of its capacity. In contrast, most automotive
batteries are designed to deliver high current for cranking the engine, and to be frequently discharged of only a part of
their capacity.