Gas consumption reactions and cycling characteristics of improved sealed Ni-Cd batteries

Abstract

Conventional sealed Ni-Cd cells were improved for high-rate applications by mixing metal hydride (MH) alloy powder with Cd/CdO active materials. Experimental results demonstrated that the presence of MH alloy powder, such as MmNi3.55Co0.75Mn0.4Al0.3, improves the performance of conventional Ni-Cd cells as they are capable of consuming hydrogen and catalysing the recombination reactions of hydrogen and oxygen by both chemical and electrochemical routes. As a result, the safety of Ni-Cd batteries is significatly enhanced, particularly when they are operated under high-rate charge/discharge processes. The addition of MH alloy powder also slows down the capacity fade rate and extends the operation lifetime.