Lithium-ion batteries are quite popular in various gadgets, such as mobile phones, tablets, laptops, cameras, electric toothbrushes, handheld power tools, e-bikes, scooters, hoverboards, and more. But in recent years, another type of battery has emerged. It is more powerful and offers several advantages. It is called a lithium thionyl chloride battery or Li/SOCl.
Since this is a new type of battery, you should know several things about it to decide if this new battery applies to your business operations.
Common applications of lithium thionyl chloride batteries
Contrary to most batteries used on various devices, a Li/SOCl battery is a wet battery type. It contains an alkaline electrolyte and a sulfonated thionyl chloride as its negative electrode.
Because lithium thionyl chloride batteries are wet-type and use acid, proper knowledge of its safe handling must be observed. Therefore, it includes a lithium thionyl chloride battery MSDS when you purchase it. “MSDS” means material safety data sheets, from which users of Li/SOCl should refer for handling and using the wet battery safely. The batteries’ MSDS contain information on how to transport and handle the product to prevent overheating, explosion, leakage, distortion, and injury to humans.
While there are some disadvantages, many industries are now using lithium thionyl chloride batteries.
- Aerospace industry. Li/SOCl batteries are commonly used in the aerospace industry because they have a long shelf life. They are applied to aircraft altimeters that measure the atmospheric pressure difference between the plane’s nose and tail.
- Vehicle industry. Manufacturers of electric cars use Li/SOCl batteries because of their long life cycle and high performance.
- Medical industry. The battery can produce high voltage, which is necessary for medical devices and instruments such as defibrillators and cardiac pacemakers.
- Various instruments. This industrial battery supplyefficiently provides power to remote instruments such as radio telemetry systems, underwater transducers, and seismometers. Likewise, they can be used in security cameras and switches with low power consumption.
Advantages of Li/SOCl batteries
The battery offers many benefits, such as:
- They have different sizes and designs, but their core properties, such as long life, energy density, and high voltage, are constant.
- Longer lifespan than nickel metal batteries. They can last for ten to twenty years.
- Environment-friendly and recyclable
- They maintain maximum performance amid temperature fluctuations. The cell density of Li/SOCl batteries can withstand high-temperature changes without significantly declining performance. They also perform well under various environmental conditions, including extreme humidity, low atmospheric pressure, and high altitude.
- They do not corrode because they have two insulators: polypropylene oxide and polyvinylidene fluoride.
- Provide high energy density per volume. This property reduces the frequency of cycling, increases cell life, and reduces reliance on current-limiting devices or protective circuits for voltage control.
- Slow loss of charge while in storage. The battery’s loss of charge is only about one or two percent annually when not in use.
- Low production cost. The production materials are low-cost compared to other batteries that require expensive separators.
Lithium thionyl chloride batteries are currently used in various applications, including aerospace and medical equipment. Solid-state batteries provide many benefits and have superior safety records and long shelf life.