At present, more and more electronic products on the market are operated by batteries. Various batteries are used to provide stable power for devices. Combined with various low-power wireless connection technologies, these devices can run for months or even years. This article will show you the development of battery technology, as well as the product characteristics of various professional batteries introduced by Duracell.
Batteries convert chemical energy into electrical energy
A battery is a device that can convert its pre-stored chemical energy into electrical energy to provide electrical energy for external use. Multiple battery packs can be connected in parallel, series, or series-parallel to provide higher voltage and current. The history of the battery can be traced back to the ancient Iraqi era more than two thousand years ago, and the first modern battery in the true sense was invented by the Italian chemist Alessandro Volta.
The types of batteries can be divided into chemical batteries and nuclear batteries according to their materials. At present, chemical batteries are mainly used in daily life. Chemical batteries can be divided into disposable batteries and rechargeable batteries according to their operating principles.
Disposable batteries are commonly known as "one-off" batteries and primary batteries, because after their power is exhausted, they cannot be recharged and can only be discarded. Common disposable batteries include carbon-zinc batteries, alkaline manganese batteries, and lithium batteries. In addition, zinc batteries, zinc-air batteries, zinc-mercury batteries, mercury batteries, oxyhydroxide batteries, and magnesium-manganese batteries belong to disposable batteries.
Rechargeable batteries are also called secondary batteries. Their advantages are that they can be recycled multiple times after charging. They can be fully charged and discharged more than 200 times or even up to 2500 times. The output current load of rechargeable batteries is higher than that of most disposable batteries. Common types include lead-acid batteries, nickel-cadmium batteries, nickel-hydrogen batteries, lithium-ion batteries, etc.
In order to facilitate the adaptation between batteries and devices, the specifications and sizes of batteries have been standardized except for some special batteries developed for specific products. General-purpose battery specifications include standard-sized batteries such as AA, AAA, C, D, and 9V, as well as button-type lithium batteries such as CR2016, CR1616, CR2430, CR2025, CR1620, CR2450, CR2032, CR1632, and CR2477, as well as 28L, CR2, CR123, 245, and other special specifications of lithium batteries.
Duracell is currently the most important battery manufacturer
There are many battery brands on the market. In terms of market share and popularity, Duracell is undoubtedly the most important battery brand and manufacturer at present. The story of Duracell began in 1920. The founder was an innovative scientist named Samuel Ruben, and an eager tungsten wire manufacturer named Philip Rogers Mallory. They co-founded P.R. Mallory, laying the foundation stone for Duracell. Duracell's first alkaline battery was created during the Mallory brand period. These new-generation batteries were originally designed for Kodak's high-energy-consuming built-in flash camera. It was not until 1965 that the Duracell brand was officially launched on the market. Its batteries were directly supplied to many professional camera manufacturers and used in some portable devices, such as tape recorders and walkie-talkies.
In 1971, Duracell began to use its iconic copper & black. These two colors represent conductivity, strength, and a high-quality battery formula. Duracell was the first battery brand to make TV advertisements and soon became a well-renowned battery brand. In 1973, the Duracell Bunny was born. Since then, the Bunny has become a symbol of Duracell that overpasses other ordinary carbon-zinc batteries in terms of duration. In 2016, Duracell was acquired by Berkshire Hathaway as a permanent subsidiary of Berkshire.
In 2018, Duracell invested in new B2B expertise to help device manufacturers provide high-quality batteries for all applications from smart home to medical care. In 2020, Duracell introduced a dual-formula battery combination to the Asian professional market, i.e. PROCELL low-current discharge batteries and PROCELL Intense high-current discharge batteries. PROCELL low-current discharge batteries are mainly used for small-current devices that require small-current and long-lasting endurance while PROCELL Intense high-current discharge batteries are used to operate motors, pumps, and other high-current devices that generate driving power.
High consistency and high quality recognized by the market
Owing to its pursuit of quality consistency and reliability, Duracell's battery products can be recognized by the market and users. Duracell's continuous investment in manufacturing has enabled it to have higher consistency and high quality, extend the service life of the battery and provide consistent battery performance.
For example, Duracell uses robust closure materials, thinner separator layers, and proprietary zinc materials on alkaline batteries to provide stable power during the battery service life. Duracell uses a mesh screen on its button-type lithium battery to make the cathode contact better and provide lower impedance to produce better performance. Compared with the inconsistent cathode position of competitive products, their utilization rate is lower and their performance is poor. This bad cathode can manufacturing technology will produce higher impedance, especially in high-current applications, and its performance is poor.
Duracell also optimizes the design of IoT devices, and new technologies and devices are mostly battery-operated, which is positively affecting the demand of primary lithium batteries. Taking the CR123, a button-type lithium battery, as an example, Duracell optimized the design of the CR123. It is about 40% better than the main competitor in low pulse load discharge (replicating periodic data transmission) in the Internet of Things (IoT) devices using this discharge type, while batteries from the main competitor stop working prematurely due to the lithium anode cut-off effect.
High-quality batteries to meet the needs of IoT devices
In order to meet the wireless connection requirements of IoT devices, the PROCELL battery series introduced by Duracell includes alkaline batteries with various standard sizes, special alkaline batteries with special sizes, lithium batteries with various sizes, and rechargeable batteries provided upon request.
Take a wireless smart thermostat as an example, it can measure the temperature and detect the occupancy of people. The thermostat can maximize the temperature comfort in the coverage area. In general, a Wi-Fi smart thermostat can be connected to multiple temperature sensors. It is mainly discharged with pulse high current when working. At this time, it is suitable to use a Duracell CR2477 button-type lithium battery.
For IoT smart home security applications, CR2450 and CR2032 button-type lithium batteries are suitable for use in smart home controllers such as control panels and wireless switches. AA, AAA, 9V, PROCELL AA, and CR123 batteries are suitable for use in security applications such as carbon monoxide detectors, gas meters, and ocean environment detectors, and CR2032, CR2025, CR1632, and CR2477 button-type lithium batteries are suitable for use in contact sensors, as well as door and window sensors in the alarm application.
In other smart products, such as cabinet door locks, rolling shutter doors, electronic locks, and other smart door lock applications, CR123, CR2450, CR2032, 9V, and AA batteries are suitable. In addition, CR2032, CR2025, AA, and D batteries are suitable for use in some contactless sanitary wares, such as sanitizer dispenser, toilet paper dispensers, air filters, etc, while AA, AAA, and 9V batteries are suitable for use in measuring pens, laser rangefinders, electronic scales, and other products in industrial instruments. Duracell's professional PROCELL battery products can meet the battery requirements of various smart products.
Conclusion
Due to the rapid development of low-power connection technology, the application of batteries in smart IoT products is becoming more and more common. Therefore, choosing professional and high-quality batteries will help the stability of device operation and reduce the frequency of battery replacement. Duracell's PROCELL series of batteries can meet the requirements of various IoT devices and will be the best partner for these smart products.