Design and calibration of a semi-empirical model for capturing dominant aging mechanisms of a PbA battery

•A novel method is proposed for developing a semi-empirical model with parameters that are explicitly tied to the underlying physio-chemical processes inside a battery.•Battery terminal voltage is predicted in the semi-empirical model through determination of Ohmic, activation, and concentration over-potentials.•Exchange current and charge transfer resistances of positive and negative electrodes are chosen as indicators of dominant aging mechanisms for a PbA SLI battery.•The feasibility of employment of the model is verified through aging a battery according to a modified IEC60095-1 accelerated aging standard and battery performance is characterized at regular intervals and used to calibrate the model.•Furthermore, charge transfer resistances of negative and positive electrodes for a battery that has aged on the field, were estimated and compared with the trend acquired from the battery aged through the IEC60095-1 accelerated aging standard to further verify the model.