UNIROSS Study on the Environmental Impact of ... - Battery Logic

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Rechargeable batteries 8
Rechargeable batteries,
responsible consumption
Component
sheets
Electrolyte
Ions
Positive electrode
The results of the <strong>UNIROSS</strong> study show the very clear environmental advantages of
rechargeable batteries compared with disposable batteries, for the same performance.
How do rechargeable batteries work? How can their use be optimised and how can we
reduce their impact on the environment? <strong>UNIROSS</strong> proposes a quick user’s manual.
I Disposable battery, rechargeable battery,
what changes?
There are two types of batteries:
Single-use batteries, called disposable batteries, which contain a quantity of energy
that is not renewable and which have a single life cycle, since they are thrown away
after each use.
Rechargeable batteries can be recharged using a charger. They have a multiple life
cycle and are recharged after each use.
What happens inside a rechargeable battery?
A rechargeable battery is made up of various sheets of components superposed and rolled
up like the tobacco leaves in a cigar. At each extremity of the rechargeable battery, two
electrodes are connected through an ionically conductive solution called an electrolyte.
From chemical energy to electric energy
Each time it is recharged, a rechargeable battery transforms electric energy into
chemical energy. When a device needs energy, the rechargeable battery converts
the chemical energy back into electric energy.
This is where there is a radical difference between disposable batteries and
rechargeable batteries: whereas the former finish their life cycle and are thrown
F
away or head for recycling, the latter can be recharged hundreds of times with
chargers.
What is the capacity of a rechargeable battery?
The capacity of a rechargeable battery is the quantity of energy that it
can store, and release to power a device. It is expressed in mAh
(milliampere-hour).
The greater the capacity (mAh), the longer the battery will last before
needing to be recharged.
Today, research has made it possible to develop rechargeable batteries
with a capacity of 800mAh up to 2700mAh for an R6 format.
Negative electrode