how come cellphone/external batteries explode but regular double A/triple A batteries don’t?

330 views

Like cell phone batteries, Tesla batteries, electric bikes and so on have potential battery issues but not your triple/double A batteries?

In: 5

12 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

It’s the chemistry.

AA and similar batteries use chemicals that are cheap and safe and good for storing energy with a long shelf life but they don’t store or deliver much energy. These batteries might heat up if shorted out but usually won’t explode or catch fire because they can’t get hot enough and there’s no physical way for them to short internally because their insides are just metal and chemical paste.

Lithium polymer and Lithium Ion batteries have a lot more energy stored in them, and can deliver a LOT more energy at once, which means they can heat up too fast and burn if they short out.

Another factor is that lithium batteries are made in layers, and the repeated chemical reaction inside can cause “dendrites” or little spikes of metal to grow between layers causing a short circuit, swelling or burning of used/abused batteries.

Lead Acid batteries (traditional car batteries) can also explode, but this is because they hold a mixture of water and acid inside. Sometimes, when charging, the water turns into hydrogen gas, which can explode if something ignites the hydrogen.

You are viewing 1 out of 12 answers, click here to view all answers.