The new generation of batteries for telecom applications

The purpose of this paper is to compare the performance of various battery technologies for remote telecom applications. There exist different types of Ni-Cd technologies: pocket plate, sintered, plastic bonded electrodes. We primarily focus on the features that are common to all of them: long life, intrinsic reliability, minimum maintenance, mechanical integrity, resistance to electrical abuse, wide operating temperature range, tolerance to temperature variations, safe recycling and, as a result of the previous characteristics, low life cycle cost. This paper also focuses on the performances of the two Ni-Cd technologies that are being deployed in the field, across the five continents. Their specific strengths are further discussed, namely, low electrolyte consumption and relatively low price, for the pocket plate technology, and high energy density, for the sintered-PBE technology. Ni-Cd is definitely part of the latest generation of telecom batteries. The next generation is under development. We briefly document the potential for lithium ion and nickel-metal hydride batteries for future telecom installations.