The source of life for most of our daily used gadgets is the battery. You may have overheard one of those ads promoting devices with lithium ion or lithium polymer batteries and got curious about them, or you may have wondered which one would be longer-lasting. Let’s finally take the masks off and see the nature of both battery types. Also, if you want to skip the deep dive into the details, feel free to jump right to the summary for a brief "too long; didn't read" conclusion.
Indeed, you don’t need any knowledge of the technical device specifications to understand how to operate it. But oh my, what an impression such nuggets of information make at parties and family gatherings. You know, when you can steal the spotlight by randomly bringing out the difference between lithium ion and lithium polymer battery, say.
You’re probably familiar with the iPhone, Samsung, and power bank batteries. These are tiny packs of volatile chemicals and metal separated by thin layers of non-conductive material. Getting down to the nitty-gritty of how these things work, let’s take a look at this simplified visualization of the charging process.
As you can see, there are five essential components that both ion lithium battery and lipoly battery share:
When you plug in your phone, it’s like a Red Bull shot to the lithium ions, which immediately travel through the electrolyte solution from positive to negative electrodes. Tired from the trip, they settle down, allowing the battery to store the energy in chemical form and gradually release it in electrical form as you actively use your device. There’s also another way out for the lithium ions if we’re discussing a portable power bank for cell phone. When you connect a device to the power bank via the output port, sleepy ions arise and turn into electrical energy streamed into the connected device.
Now that you have a general idea of what’s up with the batteries, it’s time to get down to what we’re here for.
The lithium ion battery (Li-ion) is a rechargeable battery using lithium ions (Li+ ions, if you will) as the core element of its electrochemistry. The most commonly used electrolyte in such batteries is a liquid composed of lithium salt in an organic solution.
Without further ado and complicated technical & chemical terms, let’s explore the advantages and disadvantages of lithium ion batteries.
Li-ion batteries have become the leader in the portable electronic devices market. Right now, they are used in smartphones and laptops, power electrical systems for aerospace applications, and are believed to have huge potential in activating battery-powered electric cars.
LiPo batteries have tons of different nicknames, including the following: lithium poly battery, li polymer battery, lipo lithium battery, and others. Essentially, lithium polymer, or more correctly lithium-ion polymer batteries, use the same advanced technology as lithium ion batteries to store and discharge electrical energy. The distinctive feature of li polys is that they use a polymer electrolyte (gels, block copolymers, and composites) instead of a liquid electrolyte.
Before we move on to the final comparison and reach a verdict, it’s fair to consider the advantages and disadvantages of lithium polymer batteries first.
Because LiPos are noticeably lighter than similar batteries, they are mostly used in devices where weight is crucial. Some examples would be smartphones, commercial and hobby drones, portable power banks, radio-controlled toy cars, etc.
It goes without saying that there are as many opinions as there are people. For an unemployed student, it’s paramount to own long-lasting devices which will not break for at least 2-3 years. For a freelancer, lightweight devices like a portable power bank for laptops that fit into one travel bag would be the preferable choice. Considering all that, we’ve decided to come up with a comprehensive comparison table featuring lithium ion vs lithium polymer batteries. Take your pick!
|
Feature |
Li-ion battery |
Li-Po battery |
|
Energy density (more extended battery run time concerning the battery size) |
250-693 W·h/L (higher) |
250-670 W·h/L (lower) |
|
Charge cycle durability |
400-1,200 |
300-500 |
|
Weight |
Heavier |
Lighter |
|
Price |
On the cheap side |
On the expensive side |
|
Potential threats |
Electrolyte leakage, overheating, combustion risks |
Electrolyte vaporization, battery inflation |
Both lithium-ion and lithium-ion polymer batteries have a wide range of applications, with the former leading the portable electronic devices market, and the latter demonstrating great potential in industries relying on lightweight batteries. If you’re torn between the two, the choice comes down to how much you’re willing to pay, and how long you want the battery to serve you.
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