Method of making a nickel hydroxide-containing cathode for alkaline batteries

Abstract

Abstract The cathode-forming method involves incorporating cobalt into a nickel plaque so that the exposed surfaces and the pores of the nickel plaque are uniformly covered with cobalt. The plaque is then treated to form nickel hydroxide in the pores and on the surfaces thereof. The cobalt is thus diposed at the interfacial boundary of the nickel plaque and nickel hydroxide so as to reduce the impedance and enhance charge conduction of the cathode. The mode of incorporation can vary. Thus, the sintered nickel plaque can be soaked in an aqueous solution of a water-soluble salt of cobalt, such as cobalt nitrate, then dried and resintered. Another mode involves dispersing a water-soluble cobalt salt in an aqueous slurry of nickel particles and water-soluble binder for the particles. The nickel particles are thus uniformly covered with the dissolved cobalt salt and then are compacted into a plaque. The plaque is dried and finally sintered. The sintering decomposes the binder and cobalt salt, at least the latter forming decomposition products which act as pore formers, i.e., gases, to increase the porosity of the plaque, as well as being reduced to cobalt metal in the pores of the plaque.

Inventors

• 👤 Jerry Kuklinski
• 👤 Phillip G. Russell

Bibliographic Details