What Is The Difference Between a Regular Battery And a Lithium Battery?
The main differences between ordinary batteries and lithium batteries are as follows:
1. Chemical Principle
The basic structure of ordinary batteries consists of two metal plates and electrolytes. The plates are usually zinc and carbon, and the electrolytes are usually carbonic acid and potassium hydroxide. When the battery is connected to a circuit, the electrons in the metal plate will flow through the circuit to the other metal plate, thereby generating current. The process of generating electricity in non-rechargeable ordinary batteries is irreversible, so they are disposable, that is, they can only be used once.
Lithium batteries are batteries that use lithium ions as charge carriers for chemical reactions. The main components of lithium batteries are positive electrode materials, negative electrode materials, electrolytes and separators. The positive electrode of a lithium battery is mainly composed of oxides, including lithium manganese oxide, lithium cobalt oxide, lithium iron phosphate, etc.; the negative electrode is mainly composed of carbon materials, including natural graphite and artificial carbon materials. There is a separator inside the lithium battery to separate the positive and negative electrodes. The electricity generated by lithium batteries is reversible, so they can be reused.
2. Energy Density
Energy density refers to the ratio of the electrical energy stored or released by the battery to the volume occupied by the battery. Ordinary batteries have a lower energy density, about 50-60 Wh/L, while lithium batteries have a wider range of energy density, from 70 Wh/L to more than 300 Wh/L, so lithium batteries have a higher energy density than ordinary batteries. This is why lithium batteries are widely used in mobile phones, laptops, electric vehicles and other devices that require miniaturization.
3. Endurance
Ordinary batteries have relatively weak endurance, which can only support about a few hours. Lithium batteries have excellent endurance, which can support from a few hours to a few days, depending on the power and capacity of the device used.
4. Number Of Charge And Discharge Times (service Life)
Compared with ordinary batteries, lithium batteries can be charged and discharged more times, generally up to 5,000 times or more. Ordinary batteries use chemical reactions that affect electrode activity, so the number of charge and discharge times is limited. Lithium batteries have a longer life, generally 4-5 years, while ordinary batteries have a shorter life, generally 2-3 years.
5. Environmental Adaptability
Ordinary batteries contain harmful substances such as heavy metals such as mercury, cadmium, and lead, which are not conducive to environmental protection. Lithium batteries do not contain heavy metals, so they are more in line with environmental protection requirements. At the same time, after ordinary batteries are discarded, the battery electrolyte may seep into the soil and pollute the environment, but lithium batteries do not have this problem.
Lithium batteries have good adaptability to temperature changes and are suitable for various climatic conditions. Ordinary batteries are more sensitive to temperature and their performance decreases significantly in cold environments.
6. Safety
Ordinary batteries are at risk of explosion during long-term use, which is caused by the explosion of hydrogen in the plates. Lithium batteries have better safety performance because some protection mechanisms are set up inside lithium batteries, such as charging and discharging voltage protection, anti-short circuit protection, temperature protection, etc.
7. Price
The prices of different types of batteries vary greatly. Ordinary batteries are cheaper, while lithium batteries are more expensive. This is mainly because lithium batteries have advantages such as higher energy density, longer service life, better safety, etc., and therefore have correspondingly higher prices.
