Calcium/calcium chromate thermal battery and thermal battery assignment at the General Electric Neutron Devices Department

Technical Report · Fri Oct 10 00:00:00 EDT 1980

OSTI ID:5106087

Neale, J B; Walton, R D

A nontechnical overview of thermal battery design and fabrication methods is given, along with a description of the role of the General Electric Neutron Devices Department (GEND) in the Department of Energy's battery program. A thermal battery is a primary, reserve electrochemical power source; that is, it can be used only once and then for a relatively short period, measured in minutes. To energize the battery, an external electrical signal ignites a heat source in the battery to melt the electrolyte and initiate an electrochemical reaction. The battery is made up of several series-connected cells, each with an anode, a cathode, and a current collector. A cell's anode is calcium; its cathode is hexavalent chromium. The electrochemical reaction takes place when the electrolyte is melted by heat supplied from ignition of an iron-potassium perchlorate disk. Since no reaction occurs while the electrolyte is in the solid state, the battery does not deteriorate with time and has a shelf life exceeding 20 years. Presented are such critical battery operating characteristics as temperature, rise time, active life, current capacity, etc. Design factors described include size and shape, pellet density, ignition methods, anode construction, etc. These batteries are designed by Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque. GEND acts as a procurement agency and provides engineering support to suppliers. 18 figures.

• Research Organization: General Electric Co., St. Petersburg, FL (USA). Neutron Devices Dept.
• DOE Contract Number: AC04-76DP00656
• OSTI ID: 5106087
• Report Number(s): GEPP-TIS-529
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

25 ENERGY STORAGE
THERMAL BATTERIES
REVIEWS
CALCIUM
CALCIUM COMPOUNDS
CHROMATES
ELECTROMOTIVE FORCE
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
PERFORMANCE
PINELLAS PLANT
ALKALINE EARTH METAL COMPOUNDS
ALKALINE EARTH METALS
CHROMIUM COMPOUNDS
DATA
DOCUMENT TYPES
ELECTRIC BATTERIES
ELECTROCHEMICAL CELLS
ELEMENTS
ENERGY STORAGE EQUIPMENT
ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEMS
INFORMATION
METALS
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NUMERICAL DATA
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
TRANSITION ELEMENT COMPOUNDS
US DOE
US ERDA
US ORGANIZATIONS
250902* - Energy Storage- Batteries- Performance & Testing