Carbon zinc batteries are still readily available. They are lower cost but if you don't mind throwing them away in copious numbers they are probably cheaper per unit of time. Some of the bigger ones seemed to go on delivering power a long time, the telephone batteries you spoke of were very reliable. We had a couple of those phones when I was a kid which we eventually began operating with 6 volt lantern batteries. On lantern batteries they were practically loud enough to be classified as the first speaker phones.
Dale Leavens, Cochrane Ontario Canada [EMAIL PROTECTED] Skype DaleLeavens Come and meet Aurora, Nakita and Nanook at our polar bear habitat. ----- Original Message ----- From: Max Robinson To: [email protected] Sent: Thursday, June 28, 2007 11:54 PM Subject: Re: [BlindHandyMan] How Batteries are Made Ray. Before the alkaline cell or battery, there was the venerable zink carbon cell. They ranged in size from pen light cells to the giant ones that powered the crank telephones. The crank generator was just for powering the ringer. The batteries powered the voice circuits of the telephone. As far as I know the alkaline battery has completely pushed out the zink carbon cell. Can you come up with anything about the history of the older cell? Regards. Max. K 4 O D S. Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Transistor site http://www.funwithtransistors.net Vacuum tube site: http://www.funwithtubes.net Music site: http://www.maxsmusicplace.com To subscribe to the fun with tubes group send an email to, [EMAIL PROTECTED] ----- Original Message ----- From: "Ray Boyce" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Saturday, June 30, 2007 10:23 PM Subject: [BlindHandyMan] How Batteries are Made > How is a battery made? > > Background > > Benjamin Franklin's famous experiment to attract electricity by flying a > kite > in a lightning storm was only one of many late eighteenth- and early > nineteenth-century experiments conducted to learn about electricity. The > first battery > was constructed in 1800 by Italian Alessandro Volta. The so-called voltaic > pile consisted of alternating discs of silver and > zinc > separated by leather or > pasteboard > that had been > soaked > in salt water, > lye, > or some > alkaline > solution. Strips of metal at each end of the pile were connected to small > cups filled with mercury. When Volta touched both cups of mercury with his > fingers, > he received an electric shock; the more discs he assembled, the greater > the > jolt > he received. > > Volta's discovery led to further experimentation. In 1813, Sir Humphrey > Davy > constructed a pile with 2,000 pairs of discs in the basement of the Royal > Institution > of London. Among other applications, Davy used the electricity he produced > for electrolysis- > catalyzing > chemical reactions by passing a current through substances (Davy separated > sodium and potassium from compounds). Only a few years later, Michael > Faraday > discovered the principle of electromagnetic induction, using a magnet to > induce electricity in a coiled wire. This technique is at the heart of the > dynamos > used to produce electricity in power plants today. (While a dynamo > produces > alternating current (AC) in which the flow of electricity shifts direction > regularly, batteries produce direct current (DC) that flows in one > direction > only.) A lead-acid cell capable of producing a very large amount of > current, > the > forerunner > of today's > automobile > battery, was devised in 1859 by Frenchman Gaston Planté. > > In the United States, Thomas Edison was experimenting with electricity > from > both batteries and dynamos to power the > light bulb, > which began to spread in the United States in the early 1880s. During the > 1860s, Georges Leclanché invented the wet cell, which, though heavy > because > of > its liquid components, could be sold and used commercially. By the 1870s > and > 1880s, the Leclanché cell was being produced using dry materials and was > used > for a number of tasks, including providing power for Alexander Graham > Bell's > telephone and for the newly-invented > flashlight. > Batteries were subsequently called upon to provide power for many other > inventions, such as the radio, which became hugely popular in the years > following > World War I. Today, more than twenty > billion > power cells are sold throughout the world each year, and each American > uses > approximately 27 batteries annually. > > Design > > All batteries utilize similar procedures to create electricity; however, > variations in materials and construction have produced different types of > batteries. > Strictly speaking, what is commonly termed a battery is actually a group > of > linked cells. The following is a simplified description of how a battery > works. > > Two important parts of any cell are the > anode > and the > cathode. > The cathode is a metal that is combined, naturally or in the laboratory, > with oxygen-the combination is called an oxide. Iron oxide ( > rust), > although too fragile to use in a battery, is perhaps the most familiar > oxide. > Some other oxides are actually strong enough to be worked (cut, bent, > shaped, > molded, > and so on) and used in a cell. The anode is a metal that would > oxidize > if it were allowed to and, other things being equal, is more likely to > oxidize than the metal that forms part of the cathode. > > A cell produces electricity when one end of a cathode and one end of an > anode are placed into a third substance that can conduct electricity, > while > their > other ends are connected. The anode draws oxygen atoms toward it, thereby > creating an electric flow. If there is a switch in the circuit (similar to > any > wall or lamp switch), the circuit is not complete and electricity cannot > flow unless the switch is in the closed position. If, in addition to the > switch, > there is something else in the circuit, such as a light > bulb, > the bulb will light from the friction of the electrons moving through it. > > The third substance into which the anode and the cathode are placed is > called an electrolyte. In many cases this material is a chemical > combination > that > has the property of being alkaline. Thus, an alkaline battery is one that > makes use of an alkaline > electrolyte. > A cell will not produce electricity by itself unless it is placed in a > circuit that has been rendered complete by a simple switch, or by some > other > switching > connection in the > appliance > using the battery. > > Designing a cell can lead to many variations in type and structure. Not > all > electrolytes, for example, are alkaline. Additionally, the container for > the > electrolyte can act as both a container and either the cathode or the > anode. > Some cells draw their oxygen not from a cathode but right out of the air. > Changes in the compositions of the anode and the cathode will provide more > or less electricity. Precise adjustment of all of the materials used in a > cell > can affect the amount of electricity that can be produced, the rate of > production, the voltage at which electricity is delivered through the > lifetime of > the cell, and the cell's ability to function at different temperatures. > > All of these possibilities do, in fact, exist, and their various > applications have produced the many different types of batteries available > today ( > lithium, > mercury, and so on). For years, however, the most common cell has been the > 1.5 > volt > alkaline battery. > > Different batteries function better in different circumstances. The > alkaline > 1.5 volt cell is ideal for photographic equipment, handheld computers and > calculators, > toys, tape recorders, and other "high drain" uses; it is also good in low > temperatures. This cell has a sloping discharge characteristic-it loses > power > gradually, rather than ceasing to produce electricity suddenly-and will > lose > perhaps four percent of its power per year if left > unused > on a shelf. > > Other types of batteries include a lithium/manganese > dioxide > battery, which has a flat discharge characteristic-it provides > approximately > the same amount of power at the beginning of its life as at the end-and > can > be used where there is a need for small, high-power batteries (smoke > alarms, > cameras, memory backups on computers, and so on). Hearing aids, pagers, > and > some other types of medical equipment frequently use > zinc air > button type batteries, which provide a high energy density on continuous > discharge. A mercury battery is frequently used in many of the same > applications > as the zinc air battery, because it, too, provides a steady output > voltage. > > Raw Materials > > This section, as well as the following section, will focus on alkaline > batteries. In an alkaline battery, the cylinder that contains the cells is > made of > nickel-plated steel. It is lined with a separator that divides the cathode > from the anode and is made of either layered paper or a > porous > synthetic material. The canister is sealed at one end with an > asphalt > or > epoxy > sealant that underlies a steel plate, and at the other with a brass > nail > driven through the cylinder. This nail is welded to a metal end cap and > passed through an exterior plastic seal. Inside the cylinder, the cathode > consists > of a mixture of > manganese dioxide, > graphite, > and a > potassium hydroxide > solution; the anode comprises zinc powder and a potassium > hydroxide > electrolyte. > > The Manufacturing > Process > > The cathode > . In an alkaline battery, the cathode actually doubles as part of the > container. Huge loads of the constituent ingredients- > manganese > dioxide, carbon black (graphite), and an electrolyte (potassium hydroxide > in > solution)-are delivered by train and mixed in very large batches at the > production > site. The mixture is then granulated and pressed or compacted into hollow > cylinders called preforms. Depending on the size of the battery being > made, > several > preforms may be stacked one on top of another in a battery. Alternatively, > the series of preforms can be replaced by an > extruded > ring of the same material. > . The preforms are next inserted into a nickel-plated steel can; the > combination of the preforms and the steel can make up the cathode of the > battery. In > a large operation, the cans are made at the battery factory using standard > cutting and forming techniques. An indentation is made near the top of the > can, > and an asphalt or epoxy > sealant > is placed above the > indentation > to protect against > leakage. > > The separator > . A paper separator soaked in the electrolyte solution is then inserted > inside the can against the preforms; the separator is made from several > pieces of > paper laid at crossgrains to each other (like > plywood). > Looking down at an open can, one would see what looks like a paper cup > inserted into the can. The separator keeps the cathode material from > coming > into > contact with the anode material. As an alternative, a manufacturer might > use > a porous synthetic fiber for the same purpose. > > The anode > . The anode goes into the battery can next. It is a > gel > composed primarily of zinc powder, along with other materials including a > potassium hydroxide electrolyte. This gel has the consistency of a very > thick > paste. Rather than a solution, it is chemically a suspension, in which > particles do not settle (though an appropriate filter could separate > them). > The > gel does not fill the can to the top so as to allow space for the chemical > reactions that will occur once the battery is put into use. > > The seals > . Though the battery is able to produce electricity at this point, an open > cell is not practical and would > exhaust > its potential rapidly. The battery needs to be sealed with three connected > components. The first, a brass "nail" or long spike, is inserted into the > middle > of the can, through the gel material and serves as a "current collector." > The second is a plastic seal and the third a metal end cap. The nail, > which > extends > about two-thirds of the way into the can, is welded to the metal end cap > and > then passed through the plastic seal. > . This seal is significantly thinner in some places than in others, so > that > if too much gas builds up in the can, the seal will rupture rather than > the > entire battery. Some battery designs make use of a wax-filled hole in the > plastic; excess gas pushes through the wax rather than > rupturing > the battery. The seal assembly meets the indentation made in the can at > the > beginning of the process and is crimped in place. > . The opposite end of the can (the positive end of the battery) is then > closed with a steel plate that is either welded in place or glued with an > epoxy-type > cement. > > The label > . Before the battery leaves the factory, a label is added identifying the > type of battery, its size, and other information. The label is often paper > that > is simply glued to the battery. One large manufacturer has its label > design > printed on plastic > shrink wrap: > a loose fitting piece of heat-sensitive plastic is wrapped around the > battery can and then exposed to a blast of heat that makes the plastic > shrink down > to fit tightly around the can. > > Quality Control > > Because battery technology is not especially new or exotic, quality > control > and its results are especially important as the basis for brand > competition. > The ability of a battery to resist > corrosion, > to operate well under a variety of conditions, to maintain a good shelf > and > usage life, and other factors, are the direct results of quality control. > Batteries > and ingredients are inspected and tested at almost all stages of the > production process, and the completed batches are subjected to > stringent > tests. > > Environmental Issues > > Although making batteries does present some environmental obstacles, none > are > insurmountable. > Zinc and manganese, the major chemicals in alkaline batteries, do not pose > environmental difficulties, and both are considered safe by the Food and > Drug > Administration (FDA). The major potential pollutant in batteries is > mercury, > which commonly accompanies zinc and which was for many years added to > alkaline > batteries to aid conductivity and to prevent corrosion. In the mid-1980s, > alkaline batteries commonly contained between five and seven percent > mercury. > > When it became apparent several years ago that mercury was an > environmental > hazard, manufacturers began seeking ways to produce efficient batteries > without > it. The primary method of doing this focuses on better purity control of > ingredients. Today's alkaline batteries may contain approximately .025 > percent > mercury. Batteries with no added mercury at all (it is a naturally > occurring > element, so it would be difficult to guarantee a product free of even > trace > qualities) are available from some manufacturers > > Batteries are currently the focus of intense investigation by scientists > and > engineers around the world. The reason is simple: several key innovations > depend > on the creation of better batteries. Viable electric automobiles and > portable electronic devices that can operate for long periods of time > without needing > to be recharged must wait until more lightweight and more powerful > batteries > are developed. Typical lead-acid batteries currently used in automobiles, > for instance, are too > bulky > and cannot store enough electricity to be used in electric automobiles. > Lithium batteries, while lightweight and powerful, are prone to leaking > and > catching > fire. > > > > To listen to the show archives go to link > http://acbradio.org/handyman.html > or > ftp://ftp.acbradio.org/acbradio-archives/handyman/ > > The Pod Cast address for the Blind Handy Man Show is. > http://www.acbradio.org/news/xml/podcast.php?pgm=saturday > > Visit the archives page at the following address > http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ > > Visit The Blind Handy Man Files Page To Review Contributions From Various > List Members At The Following address: > http://www.jaws-users.com/handyman/ > > If you would like to join the Blind Computing list, then visit the > following address for more information: > http://jaws-users.com/mailman/listinfo/blind-computing_jaws-users.com > > For a complete list of email commands pertaining to the Blind Handy Man > list just send a blank message to: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Yahoo! Groups Links > > > > > > > -- > No virus found in this incoming message. > Checked by AVG Free Edition. > Version: 7.5.476 / Virus Database: 269.9.10/876 - Release Date: 6/28/2007 > 10:56 AM > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
