Nickel cadmium battery electrochemical reactions

SECTION 20.7 A battery is a self-contained electrochemical power source that contains one or more voltaic cells. Batteries are based on a variety of different redox reactions. Several common batteries were discussed. The lead-acid battery, the nickel-cadmium battery, the nickel-metal-hydride battery, and the lithium-ion battery are examples of rechargeable batteries. The common alkaline dry cell is not rechargeable. Fuel cells are voltaic cells that utilize redox reactions in which reactants such as H2 have to be continuously supplied to the cell to generate voltage. 

Figure 13.16 I Important design features of a nickel-cadmium battery-are shown. Transforming an electrochemical reaction into a useful consumer battery offers many engineering challenges.

Lead-acid, nickel-iron (Ni-Fe), nickel-cadmium (NiCd), and nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) batteries are the most important examples of batteries with aqueous electrolytes. In lead-acid batteries, the overall electrochemical reaction upon discharge consists of a comproportionation of Pb° and Pb4+ to Pb2+. All nickel-containing battery reactions are based on the same cathodic reduction of Ni3+ to Ni2+, but utilize different anodic reactions providing the electrons. Owing to toxicity and environmental concerns, the formerly widely used Cd°/Cd2+ couple (NiCd cells) has been almost entirely replaced by H/H+, with the hydrogen being stored in a special intermetallic compound (NiMH). 

By placing a very pure lithium-metal foil as anode element and a lithium salt in a nonaqueous solution as electrolyte, a new generation of electrochemical generators was bom in the mid-1960s. Basically, the charge transport is identical to nickel-metal hydride (Ni-MH) or nickel-cadmium (Ni-Cd) batteries, except that Li" ions are created by the simple reaction... 

Electrochemical Processes The charged positive electrodes of these batteries contain NiOOH, an oxide hydroxide of trivalent nickel, and the negative electrodes contain metallic cadmium or iron (M). As a rule, KOH solution serves as the electrolyte. The main current-producing reactions on the electrodes and in the cell in general can be written as... 

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