Understanding your batteries in a portable world. Article on battery choice and how to maximize service life

Batteries have become essential travel companions. They help us call a friend, assist in computing a transaction and support critical missions when lives are in danger. What are the most common batteries in use today, and how do they compare in terms of run-time, cost, longevity, reliability and maintenance requirements? Are there methods to restore batteries that appear “dead”? In this article we explore the advantages and limitations of today´s most popular battery systems. We examine the batteries not only in terms of energy density but address service life, load characteristics, maintenance requirements, self-discharge and operational costs. Since the nickel cadmium remains a standard against which other batteries are compared, we evaluate alternative chemistries against this classic battery type. The alternative chemistries are: Ni-MH, sealed Pb-acid, Li-ion, Li-polymer, and reusable alkaline batteries. Battery maintenance and battery analysers are discussed