The rechargeability of manganese dioxide in alkaline electrolyte

Many attempts have been made to make the alkaline manganese dioxide—zinc cell rechargeable, but no systematic investigation of manganese dioxide types has been made to find out what properties favor rechargeability. Since it is impossible to study the huge matrix of parameters which face the investigator, it was decided to begin with the simplest task, namely a comparative testing of the International Common Samples provided by industry. The available samples differ greatly in physical properties, but they are very well defined analytically and much work has been done with these materials in many laboratories; experiments are therefore repeatable worldwide. The results point to the possibility that a low-cost rechargeable manganese dioxide—zinc battery can be designed with about 100–200 cycles in the capacity range of the present NiCd battery. Designs of thin and bonded electrodes are much favored with regard to efficiency and current density.