Page 349 - Lindens Handbook of Batteries

14.14 PriMAry BATTerieS

FIGURE 14.5 Comparison of Li/CuO and Li/MnO bat-
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teries at 20°C. Batteries are equivalently sized.

button battery market, and the cadmium/mercuric oxide battery are not currently available due to
environmental factors.
in the larger cylindrical sizes (Table 8.5), the lithium cells have an advantage in both volumetric
and gravimetric energy density. in some designs, this advantage is even more significant at higher
discharge loads. Figure 8.3 shows another comparison of the performance of solid-cathode and
soluble-cathode lithium cells with aqueous cells.
it is important when making these comparisons to identify the specific discharge conditions of
the application since the comparative performance of each battery system can vary depending on the
discharge conditions. For example, as shown in Fig. 14.5, the lithium/copper oxide battery, designed
for optimum performance at low discharge rates, has a comparatively high energy output when
discharged at these light discharge loads, but the output drops off considerably at high rates. The
similarly sized high-rate spirally wound configuration for the lithium/manganese dioxide cell has a
lower energy output at the low discharge rates, but can maintain this performance as the discharge
rate is increased. The performance of each of the battery systems, under various discharge condi-
tions, is presented in the sections discussing each specific system.
The selection of a lithium versus a conventional cell thus becomes a trade-off between the lower
initial cost of most of the conventional cells, the performance advantages of the lithium cells, and
the key requirements of the specific application.

14.4 SAFETY AND HANDLING OF LITHIUM BATTERIES

14.4.1 Factors Affecting Safety and Handling

Attention must be given to the design and use of lithium cells and batteries to ensure safe and reliable
operation. As with most battery systems, precautions must be taken to avoid physical and electrical
abuse because some batteries can be hazardous if not used properly. This is important in the case of
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lithium cells since some of the components are toxic or flammable, and the relatively low melting point
of lithium (180.5°C) indicates that cells must be prevented from reaching high internal temperatures.
Because of the variety of lithium cell chemistries, designs, sizes, and so on, the procedures for
their use and handling are not the same for all cells and batteries and depend on a number of factors
such as the following:

1. Electrochemical system. The characteristics of the specific chemicals and cell components
influence operational safety.