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Battery is a device that stores chemical energy and makes it available in an electrical form. Batteries consist of electrochemical devices such as one or more galvanic cells, fuel cells or flow cells.
Working
In a battery, one terminal is marked (+), or positive, while the other is marked (-), or negative. Electrons collect on the negative terminal of the battery while positive charges gets collected on the positive terminal of the battery. Thus, when a wire is connected between negative and positive terminal, electrons starts flowing from negative terminal to positive terminal as fast as they can. In doing so, they wear out battery very quickly. ). Normally, you connect some type of load to the battery using the wire, which in form of a light bulb, a motor or an electronic circuit like a radio.
Types of battery
There are currently three types of batteries commonly which are commonly used : Nickel Cadmium, Nickel Metal Hydride, and Lithium Ion.
1. Nickel Cadmium (Ni-Cd)(Rechargeable)
Nickel Cadmium (Ni-Cd) has been in the industry from years. The electrodes of Nickel Cadmium (Ni-Cd) consist of nickel-hydroxide and cadmium, with potassium hydroxide as the electrolyte (rechargeable).
Downside
-They are heavy and very prone to the "memory effect". Nickel Cadmiun batteries have the tendency to retain some charges. Thus, it does not get fully discharged as result of which lifetime of the battery gets reduced. To avoid it, the Ni-Cd batteries should be completely discharged.
-As this battery contains cadmium, a toxic material, it should always be recycled or disposed of properly.
NiCad batteries, and to some degree NiMH batteries, suffer from what`s called the memory effect. Memory Effect means that if a battery is repeatedly only partially discharged before recharging, the battery will forget that it can further discharge. The best way to prevent this situation is to fully charge and discharge your battery on a regular basis.
2. Nickel Metal Hydride (Ni-MH)(Rechargeable)
Nickel Metal Hydride (Ni-MH) batteries are the cadmium-free replacement for NiCad.
Advantage
Ni-MH batteries are less affected by the memory effect compared to NiCd and thus require less maintenance and conditioning. The capacity of a NiMH is approximately twice the capacity of its NiCad counterpart as it has higher energy density.
Downside
-Ni-MH batteries have problems at very high or low room temperatures.
3. Lithium Ion (Li-ion)
Lithium Ion (Li-ion) is used to produce the same energy as NiMH, and weighs approximately 20%-35% less.
Advantages
Lithium Ion do not suffer significantly from the memory effect unlike their NiMH and Ni-Cd counterpart
Lithium Ion is non-hazardous. Because lithium ignites very easily, they require special handling.
4. Smart Batteries
These types of batteries have internal circuit boards with chips which allow to monitor performance, output voltage and temperature. Smart batteries will generally run 15% longer due to their increased efficiency. It also gives the computer much more accurate "fuel gauge" capabilities to determine how much battery run time is left before the next recharge is required.
General Battery Care
-A battery should be allowed to fully charge and discharge. For proper working of battery, it should be fully charged and then fully discharged at least once every two to three weeks. Exceptions to the rule are Li-Ion batteries that do not suffer from the memory effect.
-- Batteries should be stored in a discharged state due to their self-discharging ability. Thus, after long storage period , it may become inactive
-Also, High humidity and temperatures can cause the battery to deteriorate, so these should be avoided during storage.
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