Reserve batteries lithium sulphur dioxide

The lithium-sulphur dioxide system is versatile and relatively inexpensive. This battery has excellent storage characteristics. Honeywell claim that the batteries should store for 12 years at 20°C. The battery can be supplied either as reserve batteries with capacities between 20 and 100 Ah or as active batteries in the 0.7—20Ah range (see Table 56.2). 

Honeywell have described their work on the development of an alternative electrolyte for a multi-cell lithium-sulphur dioxide resen e battery. In developing a multi-cell lithium reserve battery, the lithium bromide-sulphur dioxide acetonitrile electrolyte system used in their primary batteries was found to be unstable when stored by itself at high temperature - a functional capability required for all resen e applications. In addition to consumption of the oxidant sulphur dioxide in reactions causing instability, some of the products of electrolyte degradation arc solid, which would cause nrajor problems in activation. Primary active cells after storage do not undergo such degradation reactions. 

Table 24.1 Effect of electrolytesand storage conditions on discharge performance of Honeywell lithium - sulphur dioxide reserve batteries at 560 mAh... 

Figure24.7 Honeywell lithium-sulphur dioxide battery 20Ah reserve battery components (Courtesy of Honeywell)...

Applications for the lithium-sulphur dioxide reserve systems include underwater mine batteries and (active batteries) memory protection, manpack communicarions, life-support equipment, sonobuoys, space probes, missiles, mines, security systems, data buoys/stations, weather sondes and electronic counter measures. The non-reserve (active) systems are used for covert sensors, memory protection and weather sondes. 

Reserve batteries Gas-activated lithium-thionyl chloride reserve batteries are now supplied by Eagle Picher. It will be recalled that Honeywell supply lithium-sulphur dioxide and lithium-thionyl chloride gas-activated reserve batteries. Some of the advantages claimed for this battery design concept are as follows ... 

As lithium bromide appeared to initiate the reactions causing electrolyte instabilities, Honeywell investigated other lithium salts for use in reserve battery electrolytes and concluded that lithium hexafluoro-arsenate (LiAsFe) combined with acetonitrile and sulphur dioxide was a suitable electrolyte, which did not exhibit discoloration or deposition of solids during storage. Table 24.1 compares the performance of batteries made up using the lithium bromide- and lithium hexafluoroarsenate-based electrolytes. Clearly, the 0.5 molal lithium hexafluoroarsenate electrolyte is functionally equivalent or superior to the lithium bromide electrolyte. 

---

See also in sourсe #XX -- [ , ]

---