Author's Note
Battery user groups have asked me to write an edited version
of Batteries in a Portable World. The first edition
was published in 1997. Much has changed since then.
My very first publication in book form was entitled
Strengthening the Weakest Link. It was, in part, a
collection of battery articles which I had written. These
articles had been published in various trade magazines and
gained the interest of many readers. This goes back to the
late 1980s and the material covered topics such as the memory
effect of NiCd batteries and how to restore them.
In the early 1990s, attention moved to the nickel-metal
hydride (NiMH) and the articles compared the classic nickel
cadmium (NiCd) with the NiMH, the new kid on the block. In
terms of longevity and ruggedness, the NiMH did not perform
so well when placed against the NiCd and I was rather blunt
about it. Over the years, however, the NiMH improved and today
this chemistry performs well for mobile phones and other applications.
Then came the lithium-ion (Li‑ion), followed
by the lithium-ion polymer (Li‑ion polymer). Each of
these new systems, as introduced, claimed better performance,
freedom from the memory effect and longer runtimes than the
dated NiCd. In many cases, the statements made by the manufacturers
about improvements were true, but not all users were convinced.
The second edition of Batteries in a Portable
World has grown to more than three times the size of the
previous version. It describes the battery in a broader scope
and includes the latest technologies, such as battery quick
test.
Some new articles have also been woven in and
some redundancies cannot be fully avoided. Much of this fresh
material has been published in trade magazines, both in North
America and abroad.
In the battery field, there is no black and
white, but many shades of gray. In fact, the battery behaves
much like a human being. It is mystical, unexplainable and
can never be fully understood. For some users, the battery
causes no problems at all, for others it is nothing but a
problem. Perhaps a comparison can be made with the aspirin.
For some, it works to remedy a headache, for others the headache
gets worse. And no one knows exactly why.
Batteries in a Portable World is written
for the non-engineer. It addresses the use of the battery
in the hands of the general public, far removed from the protected
test lab environment of the manufacturer. Some information
contained in this book was obtained through tests performed
in Cadex laboratories; other knowledge was gathered by simply
talking to diverse groups of battery users. Not all views
and opinions expressed in the book are based on scientific
facts. Rather, they follow opinions of the general public,
who use batteries. Some difference of opinion with the reader
cannot be avoided. I will accept the blame for any discrepancies,
if justified.
Readers of the previous edition have commented
that I favor the NiCd over the NiMH. Perhaps this observation
is valid and I have taken note. Having been active in the
mobile radio industry for many years, much emphasis was placed
on the longevity of a battery, a quality that is true of the
NiCd. Today’s battery has almost become a disposable item.
This is especially true in the vast mobile phone market where
small size and high energy density take precedence over longevity.
Manufacturers are very much in tune with customers’
demands and deliver on maximum runtime and small size. These
attributes are truly visible at the sales counter and catch
the eye of the vigilant buyer. What is less evident is the
shorter service life. However, with rapidly changing technology,
portable equipment is often obsolete by the time the battery
is worn out. No longer do we need to pamper a battery like
a Stradivarius violin that is being handed down from generation
to generation. With mobile phones, for example, upgrading
to a new handset may be cheaper than purchasing a replacement
battery. Small size and reasonable runtime are key issues
that drive the consumer market today. Longevity often comes
second or third.
In the industrial market such as public safety,
biomedical, aviation and defense, requirements are different.
Longevity is given preference over small size. To suit particular
applications, battery manufacturers are able to adjust the
amount of chemicals and active materials that go into a cell.
This fine-tuning is done on nickel-based as well as lead and
lithium-based batteries.
In a nutshell, the user is given the choice
of long runtime, small size or high cycle count. No one single
battery can possess all these attributes. Battery technology
is truly a compromise.
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