Zinc/Silver Oxide Batteries
Characteristics
Commonly called Silver Oxide batteries they are primary cells with an open circuit voltage of 1.6 Volts.
Because of the high cost of sliver they are available in either very small sizes as button cells where the amount of silver used is small and not a significant contributor to the overall product costs or they are available in very large sizes where the superior performance characteristics of the silver oxide chemistry outweigh any cost considerations.
Advantages
High capacity per unit weight.
Long operating life. A tiny button cell will keep a watch running 24 hours per day for 3 to 5 years!!
Low self discharge and hence long shelf life (better than zinc air)
Better low temperature performance than zinc air
Flat discharge characteristics
Higher voltage than zinc mercury cells. Shortcomings
Uses expensive materials
Lower energy density than zinc air
Poor low temperature performance.
Limited cycle life.
Applications
A major contribution to miniature power sources.
As a button cell it is well suited for hearing aids, instruments, photographic applications, electronic watches and other low power devices.
Larger size Silver Zinc batteries are used in submarines, missiles, underwater and aerospace applications
Costs
More expensive than zinc air
Very expensive for high power applications |
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