FDK: Nickel-zinc batteries

2023: Product Announcement

On November 13, 2023, the Japanese company FDK introduced next-generation nickel-zinc batteries suitable for use in uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) and other enterprise-class systems. The service life of such solutions is twice the durability of standard lead-acid batteries.

In nickel-zinc power cells, zinc is used as an anode, and nickel oxide is used as a cathode. The electrolyte is potassium hydroxide with the addition of lithium hydroxide. The advantages of such batteries are relatively high voltage, good energy capacity and fire safety (they do not contain self-igniting substances in the air, unlike, for example, lithium-ion batteries). However, these batteries have a memory effect, and their resource is often not too long.

FDK Nickel-Zinc Batteries

FDK, supported by Fujitsu, was able to solve key problems. The new nickel-zinc batteries retain 70% capacity after 800 charge and discharge cycles, double the standard lead-acid battery life. Comprehensive tests in an outdoor cabinet at temperatures ranging from 0 to + 50 degrees Celsius have shown that batteries are resistant to adverse environmental conditions. In addition, it is claimed that compared to lead-acid cells of comparable capacity, new batteries are lighter and have less negative impact on the environment.

It is noted that nickel-zinc batteries can be charged using the same method as in the case of lead-acid batteries: this will facilitate the transition to a new technology. At the same time, nickel-zinc sources are seriously inferior to lithium-ion batteries in terms of energy storage density, and therefore are not suitable for use in electric vehicles.^[1]

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