These specific type of batteries have several qualities over different batteries of the same size. The first and foremost being that they do not require watering. This means a low maintenance design construction and a safer battery all together. The term however, is slightly wrong. The name should be more like recombinant batteries. This is because of the process that happens within the battery. The oxygen created at the positive plate will largely recombine with the hydrogen created at the negative plate.

The Advantages of Using AGM Batteries

This design is really helpful when it comes to solar panels for several reasons. The design offers a lot more power for the size than traditional batteries. The AGM batteries have a high rate power capacity and a relatively short duration. These types of batteries can also be found in uninterpretable power supply applications. The specific power, or power density, of these batteries is exceptional. They can be charged and discharged rapidly. They also hold their charge for a long period of time due to their construction.

The AGM battery is called an absorbent glass battery because the electrolyte is absorbed into a material made from glass. It is hard to come up with a better name for it. The plates in these batteries come in either flat cells or cylindrical cells. Each are good for different things. The cylindrical can support weight better, so can have a purer lead, translating to higher power density. The rectangular ones are easier to work with in a series, which is what you will use for your battery bank. Therefore, the rectangular celled batteries should be used.

Why They Work So Well With Solar

So what makes them good for solar application? First, the voltage is the same for any standard battery, that means no special equipment or electrical know-how required. The internal resistance is lower than most batteries, so the battery does not produce nearly as much heat. They also have extremely high charge and discharge current limits. Beyond this, the self-discharge is low. So low that it is 1 to 3 percent every month. This means that if you go for a long period of time without sunlight to boost the system back up to power, the batteries will still retain a charge.

The only drawback to these special batteries is the cost. They can sometimes cost almost two to three times the amount of regular batteries. However, with the easy maintenance, the no spill and the power rating it is well worth the initial cost. For a battery bank, there is few batteries that can really compare to the AGM. That is unless of course you have access to the up and coming technology of the super capacitor. That is however a story for a different time.

The race for technology in the palm of our hands is akin to the arms race amongst nations. Research in Motion, Blackberry’s parent company has reportedly taken an entrance in the race. The iPad set a bar that several companies are vying to match and overcome. Blackberry is slated to release their competition in November, no doubt to raise sales in the Christmas season. This has been cited from Bloomberg, which has two anonymous sources reporting the company’s plans.

Of course, Research In Motion is slow to confirm any suspicions. One compelling piece of evidence shows they have registered the domain blackpad.com. The rumors leaking out state this is the new code name for the competitive device going head to head with Apple. The question on the web now is not whether or not the “blackpad” exists, but what can it do. Or better yet, how is it better than the iPad? Several speculations have popped up on what improvements could be made, or how to beat Apple at their cutting edge game.

The truth remains to be seen. Several sources point out what the newest handheld device could boast. One potential overthrow to the Apple giant is a camera. In fact, this device may come with two cameras, one forward mounted for video conferences, the other back mounted. The device will more than likely be completely wired to handle Bluetooth and Wi-Fi capabilities. A rumored feature will be a tethering module for Blackberry phones to allow access to the internet. All of this available for the low price of $499.

Will the Blackpad Stand Against It’s Competition?

This new gadget may stand toe to toe with Apple. It will speculatively boast the same size screen and have a lot of the same features. Aside from the camera aspect, how does RIM have a hope to really launch a campaign against Apple? Statistically speaking, Apple has over 200,000 apps in the stores, not to mention all of the non advertised ones. RIM has six thousand. That is dramatically less than half of a percent. The “Blackpad” has a small hill to climb to launch a successful campaign.

Competition may be a good thing for Apple. Currently though, RIM only has one strong tool against the giant. That is the image the Blackberry carries. The iPad is quietly regarded as a toy. It has the games, it has the goofy, it has a lot of fun, quirky apps that can be entertaining. What it lacks is a solid base of customers in the business world. Apple appeals to the younger generation with a sleek, glowing look. They unfortunately cannot touch the Blackberries functionality in the business world. The “blackpad” may have a niche with the business tablet. Only time will tell.

A Few Good Tips To Prolonging the Inevitable

Another smart tip to know is that lithium ion batteries age, even when not in use. The on board computer uses a part of the charge, so do not be shy about using the battery. Always make sure to check the manufacturing date. A lithium ion battery sitting on a shelf for a year will not last as long as a battery being frequently used. To make the batteries last longer make sure to avoid excessive heat. Heat degrades these batteries almost more than any other thing. Make sure you do not leave your laptop in a hot car for several hours, or place it on carpet or other fabrics.

Lithium Batteries Can be a Hot Head

In some rare cases, lithium ion batteries have been known to explode. This is detrimental to you and your electronics. So what causes a battery to explode? The answer actually lies within the electrolyte. If the internal temperature in the battery reaches a high enough temperature, the electrolyte will ignite. This will cause a fire. This is why it is extremely important to make sure as little heat as possible gets to the battery. Most fires are caused by a short within the battery. If something internal occurs to cause a short in the battery, such as the separator failing or getting punctured, the two electrodes will touch. The electrodes touching will cause the batteries to heat up very quickly. This is similar to a standard 9-volt battery if a coin connects the two posts. The lithium is very volatile and highly energetic. A 9-volt battery can get very hot, a lithium ion battery can cause fires. If the battery heats up past a point, a fail safe vent, built into the battery will vent the organic solvent. The heat or a spark added to this solvent can cause a violent fire. If this occurs in one cell the entire battery pack will go up in flames. Of course this is quite rare, but is still a good point to keep in mind.

Lithium-ion batteries have made a world of difference to the world of portable electronics. Most people use these batteries every day in their laptops, their iPods, and their cell phones. Now you know how these small batteries operate. With this knowledge you can add longevity to your battery, make sure you do not explode it, and know what is going on inside it. Just make sure to keep your battery away from the heat and do not attempt to take it apart.

Read Previous Articles

How Exactly do Lithium-ion Batteries Work? Part 1
How Exactly do Lithium-ion Batteries Work? Part 2

Various Sources used to compile the blog..

So What Makes up a Lithium Battery

These components include temperature sensors to make sure the batteries do not over heat. Another component is the voltage converter and regulator circuit that monitor the draw on the battery . A voltage tap monitors each cell in relationship to the battery. A battery charge monitor is a small computer that monitors the charging as the name implies. Lastly, the battery has a shielded connector that connects to the laptop. The regulatory equipment is designed to protect the battery in the event of overheating, or completed draining. The on board computer is the reason the batteries have a five percent draw per month.

The battery cells are constructed of a metal casing and several internal layers. The casing holds a tightly wound spiral consisting of three layers. These three thin sheets of material are a positive electrode, a negative electrode and a separator. The sheets are submerged in an organic solvent to act as an electrolyte, such as ether. The separator does as the name implies to separate the two electrodes but still allow ions to flow through from each electrode. The positive electrode is made of Lithium Cobalt Oxide (LiCoO2). The negative electrode is simply made from carbon.

Its Got What Batteries Crave.. It’s got Electrolytes

Essentially, the electrolyte allows the ions to move from one electrode to the other during charge and discharge. During charge, the electrons move from the lithium to the carbon. During discharge the opposite happens, the electrons move back to the lithium. All of this process is contained within the metal casing and insulation of the battery cell. A Positive Temperature Coefficient is added into the battery cell to make sure the chemical reaction does not over heat. The chemical reaction occurs at a higher voltage which produces more heat.

Normal alkaline AA cell batteries produce 1.5 volts. The voltage is required to push the electrons and cause the reaction to occur. A lithium-ion reaction occurs at a much higher voltage. In order to make the lithium ions move each cell produces 3.7 volts. The higher voltage produced is the reason that lithium-ion batters are more compact than normal alkaline batteries. The small size allows them to be used in devices such as iPods and cell phones. This is essentially how a lithium ion battery operates. Knowing how they work allows people to understand how to prolong that life.

Keep Reading

How Exactly do Lithium-ion Batteries Work? Part 1
How Exactly do Lithium-ion Batteries Work? Part 3

Various Sources used to compile the blog..

The Advantages of Lithium Batteries

Lithium-ion batteries are popular for several reasons. One good reason is the weight as compared to other batteries. The electrodes in these batteries are made from carbon and of course Lithium, both of these are fairly lightweight substances. Due to Lithium being so volatile, it can store vast amounts of energy in the atomic bonds it forms. This highly reactive element means it has a very high energy density when compared to other forms of batteries.

To get a good perspective, a lithium-ion can hold up to 150 watt hours of electricity per kilogram. A nickel metal hydride (NiMH) battery can typically hold less than half of that per kilogram. Another battery, lead-acid batteries only hold about 25 watt hours per kilogram. This difference is a huge amount when it comes to weight and functionality. It would take twice as many NiMH battery material to meet the lithium-ion, and six times the lead-acid battery. Of course, those batteries have their uses as well.

Another advantage to lithium-ion is the battery charge. These batteries keep their charge better than almost any other material. Generally, a lithium-ion battery will lose only five percent of its charge per month without active use. A NiMH battery loses four times the amount at about twenty percent each month. Aside from holding the charge, lithium-ion batteries can also handle several hundred charge and discharge cycles.

The Disadvantages of Lithium Batteries

Lithium-ion batteries also have a unique structure that does require a memory effect. This means that they do not require a complete discharge and recharge for being used. Most other batteries have this requirement. These advantages are good points, but do not mean they are flawless. One disadvantage of the lithium-ion battery is degradation. As soon as they leave the factory these batteries degrade over time. High heat is also a problem to lithium ion batteries, it will cause them to degrade at a higher rate.

The memory effect for most batteries require a complete discharge before use. The opposite is true for lithium ion batteries. If you completely discharge a lithium ion battery it is worthless. It cannot be recharged from ground zero. To bypass this flaw, most of these batteries need an on board computer to control the battery. This adds cost to an already expensive chemical process. The last flaw, is that if they fail, there is a potential for them to erupt in flames. All of these are the pros and cons to lithium ion batteries. So how do these batteries work?

Read On

How Exactly do Lithium-ion Batteries Work? Part 2
How Exactly do Lithium-ion Batteries Work? Part 3

Various Sources used to compile the blog..

The first process of any DIY project is the tear down process. Breaking apart the battery casing can be a chore. The first step in the process is peeling away the stickers and exposing the seam of the battery. This is where you split the two halves that have been glued together. Good luck. Here is one tip, small snipers make the job take a long time. Try to keep the casing intact to be able to use for the reconstruction. This will make the finished device look less threatening to others.

After the cover is removed and all excess plastic is out of the way, you should see the individual cells. Make sure to carefully pop the cells off the glue base and do not short circuit any wires. It may be helpful to make a diagram of the wire leads before fully disconnecting the wires. A diagram can be useful when it comes time to reconnect to the charging circuit. The next phase of the rebuild is probably the most expensive and time consuming. Check out the video that shows the process. Remember each laptop battery is different and this article only show you the basic steps.

Video by Kipkay, Check out his Youtube Channel

Finding the appropriate sized battery can be a strenuous process. The process looks at battery size, cell capacity, and several other things. The internet searching may take almost as long as the shipping. Of course, this is the most time consuming because you have to wait for the shipping. Once you have the battery cells securely in your hand it is time for installation. The first step of the rebuild is prepping the batteries for install. Verify that the batteries are in the correct position and orientation compared to the diagram you made before.

Start by grouping the batteries with positive and negative sides. Hook the battery groups up to the power leads as the diagram you created states. Follow the diagram step by step, soldering as you go. Generally you will attach one group to the red power lead, followed by the groups of batteries in series and ending with the black power lead at the rear. After the soldering is complete and the wires are all done, congrats you have a battery. Add some protection by replacing the plastic parts you took off.

And last but not least… Don’t forget to buy your replacement cells from us at http://www.batteriesinaflash.com/assembly-cells/li-ion – The most common cell used is the 18650 Li-Ion Battery. Be sure to replace the cells with the same type of battery size.

As fun as a project as this seems, is it really worth the time and effort? It is worth the experience, but unless you replace all of the parts you probably are not going to get your money’s worth. It is hard to make a self built battery match refurbished or brand new batteries performance. On the plus side, it is a cool experiment that may earn you some respect. It is not something that should readily be pursued for a long term use.

WARNING: This blog and video are for informational purposes only and should not be attempted by anyone unless you have the proper equipment and understand the risk involved. The steps outlined are not exact steps and only general guidelines. Lithium Batteries are very volatile when not handled carefully and properly. We do not assume any responsibility for the attempt of this project.

Batteries are an essential laptop element. The technology available today, and the vast amounts of power spots make batteries an under the radar risk. However, if you are in a car ride, or an eleven hour plane ride to Japan a battery is what you need. Of course, everyone knows the basic tips. Stuff like, dim your screen, minimize processes, disable the wireless and so on. These tips can help get that bit of extra playtime on your flight, but there are more.

Processes eat up a chunk of the processor, which in turns eats up battery life. However, what some people may neglect to realize is that the hardware is one of the biggest components to battery use. Power management utilities can help reduce the impact of internal hardware on the battery life. Some ways to optimize your hardware is by disabling unused ports and components such as VGA, PCMCIA, USB, or Ethernet. If you are on a plane or car ride, disable the wireless too.

The process for disabling these components is right in the Device Manager. Another technique is to create hardware profiles that you can switch to in certain scenarios. These profiles will remember which processes and hardware ports to shut off when selected. These profiles can be set up to turn off selected components to optimize your battery life. Third party software can also help in this type of function. An additional feature of some software is turning the display off instead of going to a screen saver.

These techniques help out for each charge, but what about the longevity of the battery itself? Damaging the battery means a shorter life span. Two things hurt a battery more than anything, wrong amperage on the AC adapter, and heat. Overheating can be a major problem, and can reduce the battery longevity severely. To avoid the heat, use a cooling pad for your laptop. Avoid keeping the laptop on fabrics or any surface that blocks the cooling fan. Another factor to overheating is dust. If the fan is clogged, the laptop is not being cooled.

Keeping a neat workspace can reduce the amount of dust that attacks your system. Room temperature is the ideal setting for batteries. Try not to store the battery in areas where the temperature gets above eighty degrees Fahrenheit. If the battery is not room temperature, let it return to room temperature before using. If you are using an AC adapter, consider taking the battery out while doing so. Also, remember to clean the contacts periodically with rubbing alcohol. All of these techniques will help keep a healthy battery for longer.

If you are in the market for a new laptop, you can consider certain upgrades to maximize your battery life. When buying, look for ultra low voltage processors that use less power. Solid state storage devices have less moving parts and require less energy. Finally, an LED display uses less energy than the traditional LCD screens. If you can help it, go for a smaller screen, smaller equals less power used, and more battery life. Finally, make sure you purchase a good battery. Knowing your batteries will help you choose a good battery.

Fortunately, there exists several techniques to extend the battery life of your cell phone. The biggest thing to look at considering battery life are how long the battery lasts between charges and prolonging the overall life of the battery. The following is several tips to prolonging the life of the battery, to make sure the phone is always working its best. The most critical function is when the cell phone is on, and away from the docking station. How long does the battery last between charges? Here are some tips to prolonging just how long that time is.

Simplest Technique of All

The simplest technique is to turn the phone off. Yes, Yes, easier said than done. However, if in an area with no signal, or if you just don’t want to talk to anyone, turn the phone off. It is the easiest way to prolong the life between charges. The same holds true if you find yourself in an area with low signal. The phone will constantly want that better signal. It will search until it finds one, eating the precious battery life in the process. Combat this by turning the phone off, or getting an antennae booster. Another serious saver is turning off unnecessary functions. Processes like back-lighting, vibrate, and connecting to the internet are a near constant drain. The same goes for bluetooth, infrared, wifi, GPS, and all of the cool functions that are not always necessary.

What Else Can I Do?

As far as the overall life span goes, there are several techniques to expand the life span. First know which battery is in the phone and operate accordingly. Nickel-Cadmium operate differently then Lithium-Ion. Make sure to fully charge the battery before use, for Ni-Cd charge for 16 hours before use. Then make sure to deep cycle and completely discharge the battery four to five times to get the optimum battery usage. For Lithium Ion, charge for 6 hours before use, and make sure to never fully discharge them. Every complete discharge for a lithium ion battery reduces the capacity. Other methods to keep the life going is to store batteries properly and to keep them cool during use.

These techniques will make sure the battery life will be there when you need it most. Don’t be caught stranded without your phone. Make sure to follow these simple techniques to optimize your battery life. Replacement batteries can be expensive, especially when using the smart phones of today. All of the nifty gadgets are cool, but only use them when necessary. Make sure you know how to take care of the battery, and it will take care of you. If all else fails and you just need a new cell phone battery, get it BatteriesInAFlash.com

On Wednesday the 23rd of June BatteriesInAFlash.com (along with about 200 other companies) will be exhibiting at the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce Business Expo. The Expo is designed to give Chamber members an exclusive opportunity to present their products and services, network and get to meet the other members of the Las Vegas Business Community.

The Expo will be taking place at the World Market Center in Building C, with about 1700 people expected to attend to meet the 200 or so exhibitors. Admission is $10.00 and the Expo is open to the public from Noon till 5:00pm.

We hope to see you there, it will be a good opportunity to showcase the caliber of Business and Industry that Las Vegas has to offer.

Energizers Duo really stood by its products name. Should you have been one of the lucky purchasers of the Energizer Duo battery charger you may have inadvertently downloaded a virus along with the software that allows you to watch your batteries charge. It basically Duo’d as a charger and virus spreader.

It seems that the download-able software program will infect windows PC’s with malware that opens up the 7777 port to telnet and the like. This can potentially allow hacker types access to the users computer to list, download, upload and execute files. None of which you generally want to allow them to do.

It uses UsbCharger.dll to run Arucer.dll and also ensures that the Arucer.dll runs every time the computer starts up. If you uninstall the Energizer charger software it will remove the UsbCharger.dll which stops the Arucer.dll form being called, though it remains on the hard drive. You can go and delete the Arucer.dll file after uninstalling and when you restart it’ll be gone for good.

For more information you can check out the Energizer Press Release.