The Gillette Company

Duracell Inc.

Duracell International Inc.

Peter R Moses

William L Bowden

Stuart Michael Davis

David L Pappas

Alwyn H Taylor

Guang Wei

Rokeya Huq

Thomas C Richards

Paul Albert Christian

Han C Kuo

Bhupendra Kanchanial Patel

Enoch I Wang

Nikolay Krastev Iltchev

Klaus Brandt

Gary A Miller

Daniel W Gibbons

Donald L Foster

Christopher P Haines

Alexander A Leef

Terrence F Reise

Fred J Berkowitz

Shuming Zeng

Michael J Turchan

Michael J Turchan, Deceased

Susan D Kearney

Paul L Bedder

Particulate MnO, having simultaneously a micropore surface area greater than 8.0 m/g, desirably between about 8.0 and 13 m/g and BET surface area of between about 20 and 31 m/g within the context of an MnOhaving a total intraparticle porosity of between about 0.035 cm/g and 0.06 cm/g produces enhanced performance when employed as cathode active material in an electrochemical cell, particularly an alkaline cell. The average pore radius of the meso and macro pores within the MnO(meso-macro pore radius) is desirably greater than 32 Angstrom.

Manganese dioxide for alkaline cells

A process for manufacture of manganese dioxide comprising subjecting an aqueous bath comprising manganese sulfate (MnSO ) and sulfuric acid (H SO ) to electrolysis in a closed cell wherein the electrolysis bath is maintained at an elevated temperature above 110&deg; C., preferably above 115&deg; C. and at superatmospheric pressure. Desirably the bath can be maintained at an elevated temperature between about 115&deg; C. and 155&deg; C. The electrolysis is carried out preferably at elevated current density of between about 12.5 and 37 Amp/sq. ft (135 and 400 Amp/sq. meter) which allows for smaller or fewer electrolysis units. An MnO product having a specific surface area (SSA) within desired range of between 18-45 m /g can be obtained. A doping agent, preferably a soluble titanium dopant is employed to help obtain the desired specific surface area (SSA) of the MnO product. The manganese dioxide product in zinc/MnO alkaline cells gives excellent service life, particularly in high power application.

Process for manufacture and improved manganese dioxide for electrochemical cells

A fluorosurfactant, preferably an anionic fluorosurfactant, can be added to the anode mixture of a zinc/air cell. A desirable surfactant is an anionic fluoroaliphaticcarboxylate. The addition of the surfactant reduces gassing and improves cell performance. The anode casing can also be treated with the surfactant solution prior to inserting the anode mixture therein. The anode casing of a zinc/air depolarized cell can also be heat treated after the casing has been formed but before anode material comprising zinc is inserted therein. The anode casing has a layer of copper on its inside surface. The process comprises heat treating the anode casing by passing a gas at a temperature between about 200&deg; C. and 700&deg; C., preferably between about 300&deg; C. and 600&deg; C. in contact therewith to form a heat treated anode casing and then cooling said heat treated anode casing to ambient temperature. The heat treated anode casing is stored away from atmospheric air until anode active material is inserted therein during cell assembly. The heat treating process significantly reduces gassing during cell discharge and storage and eliminates the need to add mercury to the anode material.

Zinc/air cell

A process for heat treating the metal sheeting forming the anode casing of a zinc/air depolarized cell before anode material comprising zinc is inserted into the anode casing. The anode casing has a layer of copper on its inside surface. The process comprises heat treating the metal sheeting forming the anode casing by passing a gas at a temperature between about 200&deg; C. and 700&deg; C., preferably between about 300&deg; C. and 600&deg; C. in contact therewith to form a heat treated sheeting and then cooling said heat treated sheeting to ambient temperature. The anode casing is stored away from atmospheric air until anode active material is inserted therein during cell assembly. The heat treating process significantly reduces gassing during cell discharge and storage. The cell's capacity and performance is improved when the cell's anode comprises particulate zinc (or zinc alloy) plated with indium, preferably between about 200 and 600 ppm indium. The need to add mercury to the anode material is reduced and can be eliminated.

A metal-air battery includes (a) an anode; (b) a cathode including a metal that reduces oxygen; (c) a housing for the anode and cathode having an air access that allows oxygen to contact the cathode; (d) a separator between the anode and the cathode; and (e) a hydrogen recombination catalyst within the housing. The hydrogen recombination catalyst can include a Pd, Pt, Ru metal or a salt thereof, and CuO.

Hydrogen recombination catalyst

A process for heat treating an anode casing of a zinc/air depolarized cell after the casing has been formed but before anode material comprising zinc is inserted therein. The anode casing has a layer of copper on its inside surface. The process comprises heat treating the anode casing by passing a gas at a temperature between about 200&deg; C. and 700&deg; C., preferably between about 300&deg; C. and 600&deg; C. in contact therewith to form a heat treated anode casing and then cooling said heat treated anode casing to ambient temperature. The heat treated anode casing is stored away from atmospheric air until anode active material is inserted therein during cell assembly. The heat treating process significantly reduces gassing during cell discharge and storage and eliminates the need to add mercury to the anode material.

An alkaline battery includes a cathode, an anode, a separator, an alkaline electrolyte, and a hydrogen recombination catalyst. The hydrogen recombination catalyst includes a hydrogen oxidizing material, such as CuO, and an activating material. The activating material includes a first activating component and a second activating component. The components of the activating material can be Pd, Pt, Ru metals or salts thereof.

A lithiated manganese dioxide for use in primary lithium electrochemical cells. The lithiated manganese dioxide is prepared by stepwise treatment with a liquid source of lithium cations that can include an aqueous solution of a lithium base or a low melting point lithium salt resulting in formation of a lithiated manganese dioxide product. Lithium cations in the lithium base or molten lithium salt can be ion-exchanged with hydrogen ions in the manganese dioxide crystal lattice and additional lithium ions reductively inserted into the lattice during subsequent heat-treatment to form the lithiated manganese dioxide product Li,MnO,. The primary lithium cell utilizing the lithiated manganese dioxide product as active cathode material exhibits increased operating voltage and enhanced high rate, low temperature, and pulse discharge performance compared with untreated manganese dioxide.

Lithiated manganese dioxide

A lithium ion cell having an amount of a Group 1 element between the positive electrode and the negative electrode is described. The Group 1 element can be on an surface of an electrode separator as a deposit. The Group 1 element can increase the charging capacity of the cell, eliminate the irreversible capacity of the cell, improve the rechargeable cell cyclability, or increase the charging reversibility of the cell.

Lithium ion electrochemical cell

The invention relates to alkaline cells containing manganese dioxide cathode active material. A substance selected from the group of compounds CaWO.sub.4, MgTiO.sub.3, BaTiO.sub.3, CaTiO.sub.3, ZnMn.sub.2 O.sub.4, and Bi.sub.12 TiO.sub.20 is added to the cathode of conventional alkaline cells typically having an anode comprising zinc and cathode comprising manganese dioxide and an alkaline electrolyte. The additive increases the service life of the cell.

Additives for alkaline electrochemical cells having manganese dioxide

This invention relates to an electrochemical cell having spirally wound electrodes and an electrolyte which enhances plating of the anode metal during voltage reversal. The safety of such cells is improved by concentrating the current, during voltage reversal, between an outer segment of the anode and a metal sheet connected to the cathode whereby anode metal plates only onto the metal sheet. Thus, the hazardous condition of plating anode metal onto the cathode is avoided.

Electrochemical cell

This invention provides a design for spirally wound electrochemical cells which improves their safety during abuse such as voltage reversal. The invention comprises coupling a first segment of inert conductive metal to the cathode and a dendrite target comprised of an inert conductive metal to the anode. When these electrodes are spirally wound together the two segments of inert conductive metal face each other, held in physical separation by the separator, whereby during voltage reversal a dendrite grows from said first segment to said dendrite target.

Electrochemical cells

Corrosion is prevented in a non-aqueous cell, having iron containing components kept at cathode potentials above 2.5 volts, by the inclusion within said cell of an additive comprised of a lewis base tertiary amine particularly heterocyclic imides such as 1,3-dimethylimidazolidinone and 3,5 dimethylisoxazole wherein all the nitrogens thereof contain no acidic protons.

Corrosion prevention additive

A non-aqueous electrochemical cell having a non-polymerizing substituted dioxolane electrolyte solvent and a highly oxidizing cathode depolarizer particularly manganese dioxide.

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Windham, NH, United States of America

Peter R Moses