Qualified alkaline batteries are usually very safe in daily use and rarely have problems. But occasionally, consumers will encounter some problems, especially counterfeit and inferior batteries have great safety hazards and quality problems.
This post will summarize the four most common problems of alkaline batteries during use, which are battery self-short circuit, battery short circuit, battery leakage, and battery explosion.
Battery self-short circuit
Battery self-short circuit refers to the phenomenon that which the positive and negative electrodes of the battery are in direct contact and a short circuit occurs.
Self-short circuit is a rare phenomenon, at least for consumers. Because batteries are quality inspected before they are put on the market, batteries with self-short circuit problems will be checked out at this time and rarely enter the market.
Battery self-short circuit is caused by quality problems of the internal materials of the battery. At this time, if you use a multimeter to test the open circuit voltage of the battery, you will find that its voltage is close to zero, indicating that the battery has been completely exhausted. In addition, on the surface, there will be a slight bulge at the positive electrode of the self-short circuit battery. Internally, the battery usually has a diaphragm perforation phenomenon, which is caused by the reaction of impurities in the internal materials of the battery.
There are many reasons for battery self-short circuit. In addition to the quality problems of its internal materials, the detachment of the steel shell or the negative electrode bottom plating of the battery may also be a problem. The rupture of the sealing ring causes the positive and negative electrodes of the battery to come into direct contact, which may also cause this problem.
At present, the main way to avoid the occurrence of battery self-short circuit problems is to rely on the manufacturer’s quality control of battery raw materials and production processes.
Battery short circuit
In addition to battery short circuit, there is also a short circuit caused by external factors. It usually occurs during the use of the battery and is divided into single-cell short circuit and multi-cell short circuit.
Single-cell short circuit refers to when a battery pack (more than two cells) is installed in a device and one of the batteries has a short circuit problem, while the other batteries are normal. At this time, the battery power will increase sharply, the battery will get hot, and at the same time, the open circuit voltage of the short-circuited battery will be lower than that of the other batteries.
A common cause of a single-cell short circuit is that the spring of the battery compartment of the device directly contacts the positive and negative poles of the battery. For example, the spring sheet of the battery compartment of the device pierces the battery surface and the insulating material, and directly hits the annular groove at the bottom of the negative pole of the battery, causing the battery to short circuit.
To avoid this problem, consumers should be careful not to damage the insulating gasket of the battery surface and the negative pole of the battery when installing and using the battery, and do not weld and modify the spring sheet of the battery compartment of the device by themselves.
In addition to single-cell short circuit, there is also multi-cell short circuit, that is, multiple batteries are short-circuited in the device.
At this time, the plastic battery compartment of the device will be deformed by heat. When the voltage is tested with a multimeter, the remaining voltage of each battery is the same.
Multiple battery short circuits are mainly caused by external devices and have nothing to do with the battery itself. For example, some electrical appliances, after a period of use, the internal components fail and cause the battery to short circuit. If this problem occurs, consumers need to check and repair the electrical equipment.
Battery leakage
Although the manufacturing process of alkaline batteries is becoming more and more mature, it still uses a sealed packaging process. In theory, as long as the battery is used and stored for too long, chemical reactions may occur inside the battery, generating gas, which in turn generates air pressure, causing the liquid electrolyte potassium hydroxide to leak.
There are many reasons for battery leakage, such as impure materials of the positive and negative electrodes used in the manufacturing process of the battery, the low pressure resistance of the sealing ring, uneven application of the sealing glue, overuse of the battery, short circuit of the battery, reverse installation of the battery, and severe vibration and impact of the battery.
Among them, overuse of the battery is the most important cause of battery leakage. Therefore, we recommend that consumers should not use the battery for a long time, or remove the battery from the device in time after the battery is exhausted. In addition, do not mix new and old batteries.
Battery explosion
Battery explosion is the most dangerous and most worrying problem. Nowadays, all countries and regions have strict quality regulations and supervision systems for batteries. As long as the batteries are produced by regular manufacturers, there will be no explosion problems.
Battery explosions usually occur in counterfeit and substandard batteries.
Alkaline batteries do not use explosive materials in their internal materials. The explosion here refers to the solid material inside the battery being ejected from the battery instantly beyond a certain distance. We call this phenomenon battery explosion.
In theory, if the seal of the battery is not firm and the air pressure inside the battery exceeds the pressure resistance of the seal, the battery may explode.
To avoid battery explosions, manufacturers need to strictly use raw materials, avoid impurities in the materials, and reduce the gas content produced by chemical reactions. In addition, an explosion-proof valve should be set on the internal sealing structure of the battery. When the air pressure inside the battery is greater than a certain value, the explosion-proof valve opens for discharge, which can ensure that the battery does not explode.
Those counterfeit and substandard battery products are shoddy, impure materials, and have no explosion-proof valves. During use, they may leak, rupture, or even explode.
The above is the entire content of this post. It explains the common problems and causes of alkaline batteries during use. I hope it will be helpful to everyone.
About the Author
Liteway is a professional manufacturer and supplier of alkaline batteries, carbon-zinc batteries, and lithium batteries based in Ningbo, China.
We have more than 20 years of manufacturing and exporting experience in the battery field, providing battery manufacturing and OEM/ODM services to customers all over the world. We are a co-manufacturer for many battery brands and have been unanimously recognized by our partners during the cooperation process.
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