Alkaline Batteries

In 1959 Lewis Frederick Urry made a world-altering discovery.

Charged with the duty to extend the life of the zinc-carbon battery in 1955, the Eveready Battery engineer instead realized the potential longevity in alternate chemical compounds. His creation, the alkaline battery, produces approximately 1.5 volts per cell, creating a higher energy density and longer shelf life than the zinc-carbon batteries which predated it. This condensation of energy altered mechanisms utilized by humans, exiting the age of industrialism and entering the modern era.

Alkaline is a series of base metals including lithium, sodium, potassium, rubidium, caesium and francium. As an energy source, alkaline batteries are dependant on the reaction between zinc and manganese dioxide.

Urry's managers were initially skeptical when Urry first proposed the cost-effective idea of ceasing production on zinc-carbon batteries in favor of alkaline batteries. Many inventors had tried to create an alkaline source of energy to no avail.

In order to gain their support, Urry created an alkaline battery prototype and placed it in a toy car. He and his managers raced toy cars powered by zinc-carbon batteries against others powered by alkaline batteries. The alkaline battery-powered cars won every time.

Eveready began producing the durable alkaline battery design in 1959. The prototype of this hand-crafted cell currently is displayed at the Smithsonian National Museum of History in Washington D.C.

As alkaline batteries surged in popularity during the late 20^th century, its safety came into dispute. The mercury present in batteries can enter the environment through incinerating or landfilling dead batteries. Once mercury enters the body, it can damage the central nervous system and the endocrine system, potentially causing brain damage, birth defects and death. Its environmental prevalence, which causes food to become tainted, is also cited as a possible reason for the increase in autism.

In 1980, Eveready began altering its product and persona. It was renamed Energizer. In 1989, Energizer led public efforts to increase environmental safety by eliminating mercury from its popular alkaline batteries. This process was completed in 1992 with the advent of Energizer's powerful lithium AA battery. In 1996, United States Congress passed the Rechargeable Battery Management Act, prohibiting the addition of mercury to batteries.

The reusable alkaline battery was introduced in 1992 as an alternative to disposable batteries, which are known to corrode and pollute over time. These reusable batteries are more economical, inexpensive and environmentally friendly than disposable batteries.

Multiple battery companies, including Duracell and Energizer, continue to innovate more cost-effective, health-conscious and environmentally-safe ways to create these energy-infused cells. The Energizer Max, a long-lasting alkaline battery, is still the Energizer company's most popular battery.