Oxyride battery

Oxyride battery

The Oxyride^TM battery is the trademark of a non-rechargeable battery developed by Panasonic. It is specially developed to power high-drain digital devices such as digital cameras and MP3 players.

Construction

The Oxyride cell is different than a standard alkaline cell in the manufacturing process and in chemical composition.

The chemical difference is the addition of oxy nickel hydroxide to the manganese dioxide and graphite for the cathode. This results in an unloaded voltage of 1.7 V DC per cell. Unfortunately, this higher voltage can cause problems, especially in equipment with incandescent light bulbs (like flashlights/torches) or devices without a voltage regulator.

Finer grained graphite in the cathode and a vacuum pouring process that inserts a higher quantity of electrolyte in the cell are used during the manufacturing of Oxyride cells.

Marketing stunts

• In 2004, 2 oxyride batteries powered a light-weight "car" with a 50 kg passenger for a 1.23 km trip.
• Held a "Neuter Your Bunny Day" in Manhattan, New York in June 2006.[1] Bunny surely refers the famous Energizer Bunny. (see parody advertisement)
• In July 2006, 160 oxyride batteries powered a light-weight airplane built by Tokyo Institute of Technology with a 53 kg pilot for a 59 second and 391 m flight.
• In August 2007, 192 Oxyride AA batteries powered a car that reached a top speed of 122 km/hour, (75.81Mph) getting into the Guinness World Records. [2]

External links

• Panasonic web site
• Can a New Disposable Battery Change Your Life? Parts of It, Maybe by David Pogue
• New Consumer Primary Battery Chemistry Introduced after a 40-year Dryspell
• Panasonic Oxyride Editorial Review - The Revolution in Battery Power