Some practical considerations of lithium thionyl chloride battery development

The authors present a practical overview of some problem areas that were encountered during design and development of Li/SOCl₂ batteries for communication applications. BA-6590, BA-6567 and pulse batteries are discussed. Each battery has a particular set of technical challenges associated with its development, though there are also some common issues such as capacity and load voltage at -30°C and start-up voltages for rates between 1 mA/cm² and 20 mA/cm ² over the temperature range of -30°C to 55°C. There are some common solutions for many of the batteries-such as using high surface area carbons to improve cold temperature capacity, using new separator materials to realize greater electrode areas and use of an electrolyte that allows cell/battery activation up to rates of 20 mA/cm ². Some cell activation data are provided for a variety of storage conditions: 1 month at 55°C, 45 days at 70°C and three years at room temperature