As the demand for electric vehicles surges due to the government’s eco-friendly policies, attention is also being focused on batteries, which are key parts of electric vehicles. There are various types of batteries, from small AA and AAA batteries that are common in everyday life to notebooks, vacuum cleaners, electric bicycles, and batteries for electric vehicles.
Currently, the’popular’ battery for electric vehicle batteries is a lithium-ion battery. Lithium-ion batteries also have different appearances such as cylindrical, square, and pouch types depending on their usage. We summarized what the three types of batteries are and how each use is different by referring to Samsung SDI’s explanation.
Lithium-ion batteries can be classified into cylindrical, pouch, and square types.
Cylindrical batteries in the shape of a’cylinder (cylinder)’ are small but have high capacity and high energy. This battery can greatly increase the output, so it is mainly installed in products that require a lot of power.
Another feature is that the size is standardized for each type, so it is relatively inexpensive. It is widely used in vacuum cleaners, garden tools, and auxiliary batteries, as well as power tools that have to exert momentarily great power. Currently, it is increasingly being used in mobility fields such as electric vehicles and electric bicycles.
Unlike cylindrical and prismatic batteries whose exterior is covered with metal, pouch-type batteries have a relatively thin appearance and stretch. In a word, it is a’thin and wide battery’. If the explanation alone doesn’t give you a sense, think of a packaging with instant curry.
Pouch-type batteries are easy to process and can be manufactured in various shapes. The size and capacity can also be easily changed. Accordingly, it is widely used in IT devices such as mobile phones, tablets, and wearables that are getting thinner and lighter. Nowadays, where various designs of IT products are poured out, the field of application of pouch-type batteries is expected to increase.
The square battery is a battery in the shape of an’aluminum can’. This battery has been mainly used in removable cell phone batteries in the past. Recently, it is mainly installed in electric vehicles, notebook computers, and cameras. The prismatic battery is slimmer than the cylindrical battery and has the advantage of being stronger against external shocks than the pouch type.
There are many misconceptions surrounding lithium-ion batteries. There is also a misconception that charging the battery without depleting the remaining amount to 0% shortens the battery life, and putting the battery in the refrigerator increases the lifespan. It also introduces the’misunderstandings and truths about lithium-ion batteries’ selected by Samsung SDI.
Is the battery actually full of electricity?
“Inside the battery, there are battery components such as anode, cathode, separator, electrolyte, and so on, and not electricity. Lithium ions move and create electricity by the chemical reaction inside the battery. The charging reaction is that lithium ions move to the cathode. If it moves in the opposite direction, it is a discharge reaction.”
What is the difference between dry cell and lithium ion battery?
“The material itself is different between dry cells and lithium-ion batteries. The material inside the battery cannot be reused once used, and lithium-ion batteries are made of materials that can be reused even if they are discharged.”
Where are lithium-ion batteries used besides smartphones?
“You can think of batteries as being present in most portable devices that are used wirelessly. For example, lithium-ion batteries are used in various applications such as wireless earphones, laptop computers, power tools, electric bicycles, electric vehicles, and electric kickboards. Ion batteries are small but can contain a lot of energy, so they are used in a variety of products.”
Is it okay to charge the battery often?
“Lithium-ion batteries do not have a’memory effect’ that reduces their actual capacity when charged without being completely discharged, like batteries used in the past, so there is no problem with frequent charging.”
Does quick charging adversely affect the battery?
“Recently developed batteries do not have any problem if you use a normal fast charger together. When fast charging in an early lithium-ion battery, internal materials easily deteriorate and the battery performance deteriorates, but recently, material technology has improved. Batteries with excellent performance are on the market, where fast charging is the norm.”
Will the battery life be shortened if I use the IT device while the charger is plugged in?
“Plugging in power is the process of receiving electricity from the outside. Part of that electricity is used directly to use IT devices, and some of it is used to charge the battery. Therefore, the charging speed is slow, and there is no problem with the battery itself. There is not.”
Is there any way to recharge the battery faster?
“When charging, if the battery can accept all of the charging current, it can be charged faster. For example, if you are not using other functions such as games or the Internet to charge the battery, it will be the fastest. This is the same as charging in the air mode to charge faster. In addition, Samsung SDI is developing a technology that speeds up the charging speed of the battery because users are increasing the need for fast charging of the battery.”
Are lithium-ion batteries affected by temperature a lot?
“Basically, lowering the temperature slows down the overall chemistry of the battery. As the temperature decreases, the internal resistance of the battery increases, the lithium-ion transfer rate decreases, and the battery voltage decreases. Therefore, it does not produce enough electricity.
At high temperatures, there is no performance degradation like low temperatures, but if it reaches 35 degrees Celsius in the middle of the hot summer and even heats up the sun, the battery temperature can reach 100 degrees. If IT devices are left at a high temperature outside the real-world temperature, battery life may be shortened due to internal overheating and damage to parts may occur. Please be careful not to expose IT devices to the sun directly on vacation.”
If I put the battery in the refrigerator, can it last longer?
“No. It’s just a little bit of energy because the battery doesn’t run as long as you put it in the refrigerator. The amount of energy generated is also insignificant, so it’s not very much related to the usage time.”
When the battery life is running out, can I use it longer if I warm it up?
“As mentioned earlier, if the temperature rises slightly, the internal chemical reactions in the battery become active, so you can use more energy. However, the rate of generating energy is very small. Samsung SDI offers a way to make the battery last longer. I’m constantly working on it.”
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What should I pay attention to when using the battery in summer?
“In the battery, the internal substances may react depending on the temperature. If the temperature exceeds 60 degrees, the internal components of the battery may react and gas may be generated. Therefore, it is not recommended to store lithium-ion batteries at high temperatures. good.”
The battery sometimes swells, why?
“When the battery is charged, lithium ions move from the positive electrode to the negative electrode. Conversely, when the battery is discharged, the lithium ions move from the negative electrode to the positive electrode. The transferred lithium ions are absorbed by the positive electrode or the negative electrode. Even if the battery is continuously charged and discharged, it should be restored to its original initial volume when lithium ions are removed, but as the material performance deteriorates, the electrode gradually expands and the battery swells, which is a side effect of Samsung SDI. Various safety tests are being conducted to avoid these side effects when developing batteries.”