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A battery charger, recharger, or simply charger, [1] [2] is a device that stores energy in an electric battery by running current through it. The charging protocol—how much voltage and current, for how long and what to do when charging is complete—depends on the size and type of the battery being charged.
Typical Duracell 9V battery. Duracell Inc. is an American manufacturer of alkaline batteries, specialty cells, and rechargeables; it is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway since 2016. The company has its origins in the 1920s, through the work of Samuel Ruben and Philip Mallory, and the formation of the P. R. Mallory Company.
The first generation rechargeable alkaline batteries were introduced by Union Carbide and Mallory in the early 1970s. [3] [5] Several patents were introduced after Union Carbide's product discontinuation and eventually, in 1986, Battery Technologies Inc of Canada was founded to commercially develop a 2nd generation product based on those patents, under the trademark "RAM".
Battery chargers may be strictly manual, or may include controls for time and charging voltage. Battery chargers that apply a high voltage (for example, more than 14.4 volts on a 12-volt nominal system) will result in the emission of hydrogen gas from the battery, which may damage it or create an explosion risk.
A rechargeable battery, storage battery, or secondary cell (formally a type of energy accumulator), is a type of electrical battery which can be charged, discharged into a load, and recharged many times, as opposed to a disposable or primary battery, which is supplied fully charged and discarded after use.
The Panasonic NiMH charging manual warns that overcharging for long enough can damage a battery and suggests limiting the total charging time to 10–20 hours. [22] Duracell further suggests that a trickle charge at C/300 can be used for batteries that must be kept in a fully charged state. [23]
An AA-sized alkaline battery might have an effective capacity of 3000 mAh at low drain, but at a load of 1 ampere, which is common for digital cameras, the capacity could be as little as 700 mAh. [12] The voltage of the battery declines steadily during use, so the total usable capacity depends on the cutoff voltage of the application.
Trickle charging is the process of charging a fully charged battery at a rate equal to its self-discharge rate, enabling the battery to remain at its fully charged level. This state occurs almost exclusively when the battery is not loaded, as trickle charging will not keep a battery charged if current is being drawn by a load.