types of battery

A battery is a power source for electrical devices like mobile phones, electric vehicles, remotes, watches, etc. A battery is a pack of cells arranged in series(to increase voltage) or parallel (to increase current) type to raise a voltage to the desired level. Batteries are the primary power source for electronic wireless gadgets. There is continuous research going on in search of more energy-efficient and long-lasting types of battery. As the number of portable devices increases, the need for newer types of batteries arises. There are also environmental concerns with respect to the safe disposal of batteries. In this article, we focus on types of rechargeable and non-rechargeable batteries.

Types of battery

 Batteries are divided into two types:

Primary battery(Non-rechargeable):

These types of batteries can only be used once they cannot be recharged and use again. It includes

Alkaline batteries

  • An alkaline battery is constructed with the chemical composition of Zinc and Manganese dioxide.
  • It uses an alkaline electrolyte of potassium hydroxide solution
  • It has a power density of around 100 Wh/kg.
  • The life cycle is more, it is more compatible and efficient, size is small and has a long shelf life, low internal resistance, and having low leakage.
  • But the cost is high.
  • It is used in remotes, clocks, torches, and mini gadgets.

Zinc Carbon Battery

  • The anode is made of zinc metal
  • Aqueous paste of ammonium chloride is used as the electrolyte
  • It is based on the reaction between zinc and manganese dioxide
  • They are used for applications like clocks, TV remote, etc.

Nickel oxyhydroxide battery

  • An anode is composed of nickel oxyhydroxide and manganese dioxide
  • This is a single-use battery ideal for heavy-duty applications

lithium–copper oxide battery (Li–CuO)

  • Copper oxide cathodes are used with the lithium anode
  • There is not much use for today and is replaced by other types of lithium batteries
  •  Have a nominal voltage of around 1.5 volts.

lithium–iron disulfide (LiFeS2) Battery

  • They have a nominal voltage of around 1.5 V
  • The anode is made of lithium, with a cathode of iron disulfide

The article “Determination of Cyclability of Li/FeS2 Batteries Based on Measurement of Coulombic Efficiency” discusses the working and stability of lithium disulfide batteries.

lithium–manganese dioxide (LiMnO2) battery

  • They are the most popular type of lithium battery
  • Lithium as anode and manganese dioxide as cathode
  • They have a nominal voltage of around 3 V.

Mercury oxide Battery

  • Also known as mercury battery or Ruben-Mallory battery
  • They have been discontinued in many countries due to the toxic nature of mercury\
  • It is used for powering portable devices.

Zinc–air battery

  • The zinc metal electrode is oxidized in presence of air
  • They have a high energy density
  • Inexpensive
  • They are available as small button cells and also in large sizes
  • Short storage life

This article discusses the factors influencing the performance degradation of zinc-air batteries.

Components of a zinc-air battery (Zhong, Y.; Liu, B.; Zhao, Z.; Shen, Y.; Liu, X.; Zhong, C. Influencing Factors of Performance Degradation of Zinc-Air Batteries Exposed to Air. Energies 2021, 14, 2607. https://doi.org/10.3390/en14092607)

Silver zinc battery

  • The cathode consists of silver metal and the anode is made up of metallic zinc
  • Popularly used in flexible electronics.
  • These are aqueous-based batteries, so do not have the risk of catching fires.

Silver oxide battery

  • Silver oxide is used as the cathode and zinc is used as the anode
  • Mostly used in coin-cell or button cells
  • They are used for various applications where small size or low weight is preferred.

In this article “Printed Textile-Based Ag2O–Zn Battery for Body Conformal Wearable Sensors” the silver oxide battery is used for textile applications for wearable sensors. This type of battery is used for low-weight applications. It was also used in Apollo lunar mission.

Secondary Battery(Rechargeable battery):

This type of battery is costly chargeable and reused having huge life. It includes :

Lead-acid batteries

  • It is seen in cars and vehicles.
  • It has a nominal voltage from 2V to 24 V
  • This type of battery is cheap in cost having high power output capability and can be easily recharged.
  • It has low power density, occupies space, and is heavy.
  • It is used in cars, robotics, heavy machinery, ULS.

Ni-Cd batteries:

The chemical composition of these batteries is nickel and cadmium, it is cheap and has low discharge rate.

  • The nominal voltage is around 1.2V
  • It has an energy density of around 50–150 Wh/L.
  • It is cheap and can be recharged easily and so it is available in all standard sizes.
  • It contains metals that are toxic and it has low power density and it needs to be recharged frequently.
  • Used in cordless phones, solar lights, etc.

Ni-MH batteries:

  • This type of battery is more preferred than ni-cd battery due to its lower environmental impact.
  • The nominal voltage is 1.25V.
  • It has an energy density of ~200-400 Wh/L.
  • It has high power density and is available in all standard sizes, is rechargeable easily.
  • It has self-discharge very high and is expensive than ni-cd batteries.

Li-ion batteries:

  • This is compact in size and is used in almost all portable applications which need high power.
  • They have nominal voltage power of around 3.7V
  • The power density of li-ion batteries is around 100-250 wh/kg.
  • It is light in weight, cell voltage and power density are very high, and also has a high C-rating.
  • It is a bit expensive.
  • It requires circuit protection or it might explode.

Li-Polymer batteries:

  • It is a lithium-ion polymer battery that is rechargeable as it uses high conductivity polymer gel/polymer electrolyte instead of liquid.
  • They are costly but are highly protected as compared to Li-ion batteries.
  • The power density is 186Wh/kg.
  • This is highly protective, lightweight, and is thin in structure.
  • They are expensive and can explode if not connected properly.

Lithium Cobalt Oxide (LiCoO2) battery

  • This battery has a cathode of lithium cobalt oxide
  • High specific energy
  • Short lifetime

Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) battery

  • Low cost and environment friendly compared to other types of lithium batteries
  • Chemically and thermally stable
  • Relatively safe
  • Used in substations

This article titled “Safety Analysis and System Design of Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery in Substation” assesses the safety aspects of lithium iron phosphate batteries for use in substations.

Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide (LiNiMnCoO2)

  • A mixed oxide of lithium, nickel, manganese, and cobalt is used as cathode material.
  • They are used in electric vehicles and also in smartphones and laptops.

This review article titled “Synthesis and Manipulation of Single-Crystalline Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide Cathodes: A Review of Growth Mechanism” discusses the synthesis methods of lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide materials for potential applications in lithium-ion batteries.

Lithium Manganese Oxide (LiMn2O4)

  • This is also a type of lithium-ion battery with manganese oxide-based material as the cathode.
  • Inexpensive to the abundance of manganese oxide
  • Wide temperature range operation
  • Also available in coin cell form

This article titled “Facile Controlled Synthesis of Spinel LiMn2O4 Porous Microspheres as Cathode Material for Lithium-Ion Batteries” explains the synthesis of LiMn2O4 microspheres and their eventual use as electrode materials in lithium batteries.

Lithium Titanate (Li2TiO3) Battery

  • It uses lithium titanate nanocrystals as anode instead of carbon.
  • Due to the nano/microstructured surface of lithium titanate, it has a large surface area, allowing electrons to move easily, giving rise to faster charging times.
  • They are used in many electric cars
  • Very expensive
  • They are safe and possess a minimal risk of fires.
  • These types of batteries have relatively lower energy densities which is a drawback for their application.

You can read this article title “Hierarchically structured lithium titanate for ultrafast charging in long-life high capacity batteries” for understanding the importance of the crystal structure for the performance of the battery. They discuss the importance of crystallite size and morphology for the electrochemical properties of lithium titanate batteries.

This article titled “Role of Electrolytes in the Stability and Safety of Lithium Titanate-Based Batteries” discusses the safety aspects of lithium titanate batteries with respect to the nature of electrolyte used.

See also

Uses of resistors
Difference between motor and generator
Difference between earthing and grounding