The Lithium-ion battery has always been the first choice for smartphones and other portable gadgets and devices. However, these days, we are moving towards using Lithium Polymer batteries, a suitable alternative for several people out there looking for reliable batteries.
And, we can’t deny the fact that the change is better due to lithium-ion battery’s overheating issues that have been reported several times.
As every customer is keeping battery safety and longevity on their priority list, so it is good to know more about both Lithium-ion and Lithium-polymer batteries. Let’s move ahead to learn this.
How does Lithium-Ion Batteries Operate?
Lithium-ion batteries are a trusted masterpiece and have been there in the industry for a long time. The development of their technology began in 1912, but they earned popularity when they were adopted by Sony in 1991.
Since then, lithium-ion batteries have been used greatly in a variety of gadgets like portable cameras, smartphones, music players, and more.
Lithium-ion batteries have proven to be successful over the years due to their high energy density, lack of memory effect, and cheap cost of production.
Unlike the past battery technologies, these batteries are produced using two positive and negative electrodes that are separated by a liquid chemical electrolyte including ethylene carbonate and diethyl carbonate.
Their chemical composition limits them into a rectangular shape and the capacity of these batteries decreases over charge cycles and gets discharged when not in use, which isn’t usually preferred.
How does Lithium Polymer Batteries Operate?
Lithium Polymer batteries are newer than lithium-ion batteries. They were not there in the industry until the 1970s and only made their way a few years back.
Currently, they are used in the manufacturing of smartphones and Samsung is using them for their Galaxy S20 series.
Lithium polymer batteries use a positive and negative electrode but with a dry solid, porous chemical, and gel-like electrolyte instead of a liquid.
Due to this polymer batteries offer a lower profile, flexible, and more robust designs, and have fewer chances of leaking electrolytes that result in a thermal run away. Therefore, these batteries are much safer to use.
A drawback of these batteries includes a considerably higher manufacturing cost. Also, the lithium-polymer life cycle is shorter and these batteries store less energy than the lithium-ion ones. The batteries use protection circuits to keep voltages operating with their safe limits.
Lithium-Ion v/s Lithium Polymer: Which one is Safer?
A lithium battery comes with outer packaging of an aluminum shell battery in which the electrolyte is in a liquid state.
On the other hand, a lithium polymer battery is an upgraded version of lithium-ion batteries. It is safer than lithium-ion batteries that are prone to explosion. These batteries have an aluminum casing that makes them less susceptible to explosions and making them safer to use.
However, a lot of time is required to replace the whole industry chain and produce lithium polymer batteries in large numbers to serve the growing demand. So, their cost is still quite high and they are used only in high-end digital products such as ultra-thin notebooks, computers, and more.
The lithium polymer batteries are also safe because they have no leakage problem and their inner parts don’t contain a liquid electrolyte, instead a colloidal solid is there.
Conclusion
In this article, we have explained how lithium polymer batteries are much safer than lithium-ion batteries. These batteries also have a low self-discharge level so they won’t go flat when you they are not in use.
However, keep in mind that the lithium polymer batteries come with a higher price, a shorter life-span, and a lower capacity.
Still, lithium polymer batteries are gradually replacing lithium-ion batteries in the industry and growing their market value significantly. Meanwhile, Also read our guide on How to increase the battery life of the electric scooter