NICKEL/ZINC VIBROCEL BATTERY FOR EV APPLICATIONS.

The VIBROCEL concept as applied to Ni-Zn batteries offers the advantage of extended life to this battery system. The design principle involves a discrete spacing between electrodes, and the vibration of the negative electrode assembly at low frequencies only during charge. This vibratory motion enhances the deposition of a uniform plating of zinc by equalizing the concentration gradients of zincate in the electrolyte. No barrier type separator system is required and zinc shape change is virtually eliminated. Thermal rise problems normally encountered in nickel zinc cells are much less of a problem. The life of the system depends mainly on the character of the nickel cathodes and can be expected to exceed 1000 cycles. The nature of VIBROCEL construction imposes a penalty in energy density and specific volume as compared to conventional Ni-Zn batteries. This paper presents details of cell and battery design, and test results of experimental cells and batteries. Problem areas are discussed along with the development effort directed toward their solution. An estimation of improvements in performance is presented.