Recharging the acid zinc manganese dioxide system

A system which has demonstrated rechargeability especially with premium ingredients is the weak acid zinc manganese dioxide system, the Leclanche system. To establish a base of information, commercially available premium Leclanche cells have been cycled at the three or four hour rate on discharge with a ten hour rate on recharge. Without stringent charge control, fourteen cycles can be obtained. Failure appears to be due to zinc dendrite formation. Possible improvements resulting from changes in separator composition changed the causes of failure without changing the actual cycle life very much although a 50% or more improvement was achieved against a control composition. The need for both current and voltage control with the system was apparent during the testing process