30-second summary
Zinc-chloride Battery
The zinc-chloride battery is a type of primary battery developed from a zinc-carbon cell. It is frequently referred to as a heavy-duty, extra-heavy-duty, super-heavy-duty, or super-extra-heavy-duty battery.
Zinc-chloride cell is an improvement on the original zinc-carbon cell, using purer chemicals and giving a longer service life and steadier voltage output as it is used and offering about twice the service life of general-purpose zinc-carbon cells, or up to four times in continuous-use or high-drain applications.
Similarly, as for alkaline batteries, zinc-chloride batteries have higher energy density than rechargeable secondary cells. High specific energy, long storage times (low self-discharge), and instant readiness give zinc-chloride batteries a unique advantage over other power sources.
An electric battery is essentially a source of DC electrical energy. It converts stored chemical energy into electrical energy through an electrochemical process. This then provides a source of electromotive force to enable currents to flow in electric and electronic circuits. A typical battery consists of one or more voltaic cells.
The fundamental principle in an electrochemical cell is spontaneous redox reactions in two electrodes separated by an electrolyte, which is a substance that is ionic conductive and electrically insulated.
Chemical energy can be stored, for example, in Zn or Li, which are high-energy metals because they are not stabilized by d-electron bonding, unlike transition metals. Even though a wide range of types of batteries exists with different combinations of materials, all of them use the same principle of the oxidation-reduction reaction. Batteries are designed so that the energetically favorable redox reaction can occur only when electrons move through the external part of the circuit.
The voltage of electric batteries is created by the potential difference of the materials that compose the positive and negative electrodes in the electrochemical reaction. Because most of the resulting voltages are around 2V, cells are connected in series to obtain more practical electrical potentials (i.e. six 2V lead acid cells are connected in series to obtain a typical 12V battery).
Zinc-chloride Battery
The zinc-chloride battery is a type of primary battery developed from a zinc-carbon cell. It is frequently referred to as a heavy-duty, extra-heavy-duty, super-heavy-duty, or super-extra-heavy-duty battery. Zinc-chloride cell is an improvement on the original zinc-carbon cell, using purer chemicals and giving a longer service life and steadier voltage output as it is used and offering about twice the service life of general-purpose zinc-carbon cells, or up to four times in continuous-use or high-drain applications. These cells are basically Leclanché cells in which the ammonium chloride has been completely, or almost completely, replaced by ZnCl2.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Zinc-chloride Batteries
Advantages:
Similarly, as for alkaline batteries, zinc-chloride batteries have higher energy density than rechargeable secondary cells. High specific energy, long storage times (low self-discharge), and instant readiness give zinc-chloride batteries a unique advantage over other power sources. They are usually the best choice for low-drain applications. But zinc-chloride batteries can also be used for higher drain applications. They can be carried to remote locations and used instantly, even after long storage.
Disadvantages:
The main disadvantage of zinc-chloride batteries is that they are non-rechargeable. They are also less environment friendly than rechargeable batteries. The application of primary batteries leads to a large amount of waste batteries to be recycled. For large batteries, primary batteries are usually not cost-effective.
Other Types of Batteries
The following list summarizes notable electric battery types composed of one or more electrochemical cells. Four lists are provided in the table. The first list is a battery classification by size and format. Then, the primary (non-rechargeable) and secondary (rechargeable) cell lists are lists of battery chemistry. The third list is a list of battery applications. The final list is a list of different battery voltages.
Sizes
- AA battery
- AAA battery
- AAAA battery
- C battery
- D battery
- cr1220 battery
- cr1620 battery
- cr1632 battery
- cr1616 battery
- cr2016 battery
- cr2032 battery
- cr2025 battery
- cr2430 battery
- cr2450 battery
- cr123 battery
- cr2 battery
- cr132a battery
- lr1130 battery
- lr41 battery
- lr44 battery
- A23 battery
- a13 battery
- 18650 battery
- 21700 battery
