Lithium/thionyl chloride primary batteries

Lithium-thionyl chloride primary batteries 9/9 9.4 Lithium-vanadium pentoxide primary battery 9/10... 

The lithium sulfur dioxide and the lithium thionyl chloride systems are specialty batteries. Both have liquid cathode reactants where the electrolyte solvent is the cathode-active material. Both use polymer-bonded carbon cathode constructions. The Li-S02 is a military battery, and the Li-SOCl2 system is used to power automatic meter readers and for down-hole oil well logging. The lithium primary battery market is estimated to be about 1.5 billion in 2007. 

Lithium Primary Cells, Liquid Cathodes, Fig. 7 Cutaway view of lithium/thionyl chloride spirally wound electrode D-cell battery [5]... 

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (Pasadena, CA) has evaluated several types of lithium primary batteries to determine their ability to operate planetary probes at temperatures of -80°C and below. Individual cells were evaluated by discharge tests and Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy. Of the five types considered (Li/SOCl2, Li/S02, Li/Mn02, Li-BCX and Li-CFn), lithium-thionyl chloride and lithium-sulfur dioxide were found to provide the best performance at -SOT. Lowering the electrolyte salt to ca. 0.5 molar was found to improve performance with these systems at very low temperatures. In the case of D-size Li/ SOCI2 batteries, lowering the LiAlCl4 concentration from 1.5 to 0.5 molar led to a 60% increase in capacity on a baseline load of 118 ohms with periodic one-minute pulses at 5.1 ohms at -85 C. 

The lithium/sulfuryl chloride (Li/S02Cl2) battery is in addition to the lithium/thionyl chloride battery, the other oxychloride that has been used for primary lithium batteries. The Li/S02Cl2 battery has two potential advantages over the Li/SOCl2 battery ... 

Primary lithium batteries offer these advantages as well as good low-temperature characteristics. There are many kinds of primary lithium batteries, with various cathode active materials the main ones are lithium-manganese dioxide, lithium-carbon monofluoride, and lithium-thionyl chloride batteries [28]. 

The lithium-thionyl chloride battery, a primary battery, exhibits high discharge rate and energy density but does not achieve theoretical energy density. A variety of catalysts have been explored for this battery, but metal phthalocyanines are the most desirable ones [10, 11]. The mechanism of catalytic reduction of SOCI2 has been described in detail [12-14]. The following pathways have been proposed for catalytic redox reactions ... 

Primary batteries, silver—zinc and silver chloride-magnesium seawater batteries secondary batteries, nickel-cadmium, silver—zinc, silver-cadmium, lithium-sulphur dioxide, lithium-thionyl chloride. 

SAFT Corporation of America, 50 Rockefeller Plaza, New York 10020, New York also, 107 Beaver Court, Lockeysville, Maryland Primary batteries, zinc-alkaline, zinc-alkaline manganese dioxide, carbon-zinc Leclanche, lithium types (lithium-lead bismuthate, lithium-silver chromate) secondary batteries, nickel-cadmium, iithium-copper oxyphosphate, lithium-thionyl chloride, zinc-air, thermal-cells, water-activated batteries. 

Primary batteries, magnesium types, lithium types secondary batteries, silver-zinc, silver-cadmium, lithium-thionyl chloride, lithium—sulphur dioxide, nickel-zinc. 

For about a century after the invention of the Ledanche cell (and the lead-acid rechargeable battery) the highest voltage attained in any battery was 2.1V, and primary cells delivered a maximum voltage of about 1.5 V. This changed in the mid 1960s, when the Li-thionyl chloride (LiSOCb) battery was introduced. In this and other nonaqueous lithium batteries, a potential of about 3.0 V was achieved. 

Health nd Safety Factors. Thionyl chloride is a reactive acid chloride which can cause severe bums to the skin and eyes and acute respiratory tract injury upon vapor inhalation. The hydrolysis products, ie, hydrogen chloride and sulfur dioxide, are beheved to be the primary irritants. Depending on the extent of inhalation exposure, symptoms can range from coughing to pulmonary edema (182). The LC q (rat, inhalation) is 500 ppm (1 h), the DOT label is Corrosive, Poison, and the OSHA PEL is 1 ppm (183). The safety aspects of lithium batteries (qv) containing thionyl chloride have been reviewed (184,185). 

The oxyhalides, thionyl chloride (SOCI2) and sulfuryl chloride (SO2CI2), have been employed in lithium primary cells by themselves and with macro additives to improve performance. The basic technology was developed after the Li/sulfur dioxide system by the Eveready Battery Company (now Energizer), the... 

Lithium batteries use nonaqueous solvents for the electrolyte because of the reactivity of lithium in aqueous solutions. Organic solvents such as acetonitrile, propylene carbonate, and dimethoxyethane and inorganic solvents such as thionyl chloride are typically employed. A compatible solute is added to provide the necessary electrolyte conductivity. (Solid-state and molten-salt electrolytes are also used in some other primary and reserve lithium cells see Chaps. 15, 20, and 21.) Many different materials were considered for the active cathode material sulfur dioxide, manganese dioxide, iron disulfide, and carbon monofluoride are now in common use. The term lithium battery, therefore, applies to many different types of chemistries, each using lithium as the anode but differing in cathode material, electrolyte, and chemistry as well as in design and other physical and mechanical features. 

Within each Part, chapters are included on all available types of primary batteries, secondary batteries and batteries available in primary and secondary versions. The primary batteries include carbon-zinc, carbon-zinc chloride, mercury-zinc and other mercury types, manganese dioxide-magnesium perchlorate, magnesium organic, lithium types (sulphur dioxide, thionyl chloride, vanadium pentoxide, iodine and numerous other lithium types), thermally activated and seawater batteries. Batteries available in primary and secondary Corms include alkaline manganese, silver-zinc, silver-cadmium, zinc-air and cadmium-air. The secondary batteries discussed include lead-acid, the nickel types (cadmium, iron, zinc, hydrogen), zinc-chlorine, sodium-sulphur and other fast ion types. 

The reactivity of lithium in aqueous solutions requires the use of nonaqueous electrolytes for lithium anode batteries. Polar organic hquids are the most common electrolyte solvents for the active primary cells, except for the thionyl ehloride (SOCy and sulfuryl chloride (SO2CI2) cells, where these inorganie compounds serve as both the solvent and the active cathode material. The important properties of the eleetrolyte are ... 

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