Lithium-ion technology has become the most popular battery type. Lithium-ion technology is the most common source of power in many everyday products, such as mobile phones, laptops, power tools, and cars. Technology is constantly evolving and focusing on speed and big data. This means that portable power is becoming more important.

Tennant's rechargeable lithiumion (Lii-on), batteries are becoming increasingly popular as a power source for certain equipment. There are five key benefits to lithium-ion batteries: ease of use, maintenance, longevity and charging speed. Before getting into the details, let us first explain what lithium-ion batteries are and some of their science.

What makes lithium batteries and lithium-ion different?

The bottom line is that lithium-ion batteries can recharge, while traditional wet batteries can't. Li-ion battery are stable and can be recharged hundreds of time. They are generally more efficient than rechargeable batteries in terms of energy density, voltage capability and self-discharge rates. This allows for greater power efficiency because a single cell is more likely to retain its charge than other types of batteries.

Advanced battery technology, the lithium-ion battery (Li-ion), uses lithium ions to power its electrochemistry. The anode contains lithium atoms that are ionized, separated from electrons and recombined with them during a discharge. The lithium ions leave the anode and move through the electrolyte to reach the cathode. There they recombine with the electrons and then electrically neutralize. The lithium ions can move through a micro-permeable separator. Due to lithium's small size, which is third only to hydrogen or helium, Li-ion battery can store a lot of charge per unit volume and mass.

Many different materials can be used as electrodes in Li-ion battery. The most popular combination is lithium cobalt and graphite as anode and cathode. This is the most common in portable electronic devices, such as laptops and cellphones. Other cathode materials include the lithium manganese oxid (used in hybrid and electric cars) and the lithium iron phosphate. Li-ion battery typically uses ether (a type of organic compounds), as an electrolyte.

What are the benefits of Li-ion batteries

Compared to the other high-quality rechargeable battery technologies (nickel-cadmium or nickel-metal-hydride), Li-ion batteries have a number of advantages. They are capable of producing 100-265 Wh/kg and 250-670Wh/L, which is one of the most energy dense battery technologies. Furthermore, Li-ion cells can deliver upto 3.6 Volts. This is three times greater than Ni-Cd/Ni-MH. These batteries can provide large currents for high-power applications. They also have a low maintenance requirement and do not need to be cycled regularly. No memory effect can be caused by repeated partial discharge/charge cycles, which can result in a battery having a lower capacity. This is a significant advantage over Ni-Cd/Ni-MH, which exhibit this effect. The self-discharge rate for Li-ion battery is also low at 1.5-2% per lună. They don't contain toxic Cadmium which makes them more convenient to dispose of than NiCd batteries.

Because of these advantages, lithium-ion batteries have overtaken Ni-Cd as the market leader when it comes to portable electronic devices like smartphones and laptops. The new lightweight Boeing 787 is an example of an aerospace application that uses Li-ion battery technology. Their potential use in battery-powered cars is what makes Li-ion technology so attractive from a clean energy standpoint.