Prevalent, Low-Cost Source Material
Zinc-air technology has an important advantage over other common battery technologies: the availability of zinc metal is 100 times greater than that of lithium, per unit of battery energy. Approximately 35% of the world’s supply, or 1.8 gigatons of zinc reserves are found in the United States, whereas the U.S. holds only 0.38% of known lithium reserves.
High Energy Density
The zinc-air cell has a gravimetric energy density that is up to five times the energy of alkaline systems and up to ten times of lithium rechargeable systems. The highest energy is delivered under conditions of frequent or continuous use and operating temperatures between 0 ºC and 50 ºC (32 ºF and 122 ºF).
Low Operating Cost
Zinc-air batteries deliver the highest energy density (capacity) of any commercially available system, and at the lowest operating cost on a per-kilowatt-hour basis.
Excellent Sealed Shelf Life
The sealed (inactivated) zinc-air cell has been demonstrated to retain greater than 98% of its rated capacity after one year of storage at 21 ºC (70 ºF). The inactivated storage life is rated up to 5 years. Activated batteries should be used within 2 months.
Flat Discharge Profile
Typically zinc-air cells maintain a constant output voltage between 1.1 and 1.25 volts throughout the discharge life of the cell at low-to medium drain rates.
Intrinsically Safe
Zinc-air cells offer a means of self-venting any internally generated gases through air-access holes located on the cathode can, eliminating the possibility of cell rupture or explosion. In addition, zinc-air cells are generally considered non-toxic and environmentally safe (contains zero mercury, cadmium, lead or lithium), and under most conditions do not require special handling or disposal procedures. |