Development of Sintered Fiber Nickel Electrodes for Aerospace Batteries

The nickel electrode is the specific energy limiting component in nickel battery systems. A concerted effort is currently underway to improve NiH2 performance while decreasing system cost. Increased performance with electrode specific energy (mAh/g) is the major goal of this effort. However, cost reduction is also an important part of the overall program, achieved by reducing the electrode weight. A lightweight, high energy density, nickel electrode is being, developed based on a highly porous, sintered fiber, nickel substrate. This developing technology has many applications, but is highly, applicable to the military and aerospace industries.