Are Carbon Zinc Batteries Good?

Carbon zinc batteries are composed of zinc cylinders, manganese dioxide, acetylene black, electrolyte, membrane paper, carbon rods and other main components. The zinc cylinders are used as the outer shell of the battery and as the negative electrode material to participate in chemical reactions. See the figure below, the plan view of a carbon zinc battery.

The open-circuit voltage of carbon batteries is 1.5V. Because the structure of carbon batteries determines the capacity of carbon batteries, compared with alkaline batteries, carbon batteries have a shorter discharge time and are not suitable for high-power electrical appliances. For example, the current good carbon AA batteries on the market generally have a discharge time of 105 minutes, but in the high voltage range from 1.5V to 1.2V, the discharge time is only 30 minutes. Generally, high-power electrical appliances, such as electric shavers, cannot work normally when the voltage is lower than 1.2V. You can download the figure below for the release curve.

At the same time, the self-discharge rate of carbon batteries decreases faster than that of alkaline batteries. According to IEC60086-2 (you can click it), the annual self-discharge rate is 20%. According to our actual test data analysis, it should be between 10%-20%.

In summary, the quality of carbon batteries is also good, but the discharge time is shorter, and the discharge time of the high voltage section is shorter. It is not suitable for high-power appliances, such as cameras, electric shavers, electric toys, and electronic locks. Suitable for flashlights, remote controls, etc.