Popular Battery Types

There are two types of Batteries:
1.Primary Batteries - Primary Batteries are use and throw kind of batteries. Once discharged they are useless and you cannot make them usable again. Alkaline battery, Zinc-carbon battery, Zinc-carbon battery, and Silver-oxide battery are a few examples of Primary batteries.
AlkalineAlkaline batteries are the most common battery types. They consist of manganese dioxide, zinc and zinc electrolyte. The mercury used in alkaline batteries is for anti-passivation to stabilize zinc electrodes. If mercury were not present in these batteries, alkaline batteries would be less powerful in output. The nominal terminal voltage is 1.5V, but when an alkaline battery is in use, the voltage decreases. The advantages of alkaline batteries are that they work equally well at both low and high temperatures, they have a long shelf life and high energy density, discharging great amounts of energy. Alkaline batteries are popularly used for torches, cameras and CD players.
Carbon ZincCarbon-zinc batteries are primarily standard duty cells, made of carbon manganese dioxide with a 1.5 nominal voltage. These batteries are the cheapest on the market. However, they have a medium discharge rate, poor shelf life and their performance is rated as reasonable.
LithiumLithium batteries are made of lithium manganese dioxide, with a mega 3.0 nominal voltage. Lithium batteries' voltage have medium to high discharge and are among the most expensive on the market. Emitting huge quantities of energy and holding a high capacity of current, a lithium battery's energy discharge is low and works optimally at low temperatures.
Zinc ChlorideZinc chloride are heavy duty, primary batteries with a 1.5 voltage and cost between the range of low to medium. Zinc chloride batteries are termed heavy duty because they give out a lot of current when activated and are most used for high powered equipment.
2.Secondary or Rechargeable Batteries - Secondary Batteries are also known as rechargeable batteries. We can charge and use these batteries repeatedly when discharged. These are more popular due to long life and rechargeable nature.
The most common types of rechargeable batteries are lead-acid, nickel cadmium, alkaline, nickel metal hydride and lithium ion. Lithium ion batteries are considered the most advanced rechargeable battery type and are used in most contemporary consumer electronics.
The main feature of a rechargeable battery is self-evident--it can be charged multiple times. Secondary features that differ depending on the type of battery include:
Self-Discharge: This effect occurs within the battery cells causing the battery to lose power over time even when not in use.
Memory Effect: An effect mostly witnessed in Nickel Cadmium batteries, the battery seems to lose its maximum energy capacity if charged multiple times without being fully discharged.
Energy-to-Mass Ratio: This refers to the energy density of the battery.
Currently, Lithium ion batteries are the best performing rechargeable batteries if considering the above features.
This is the age for portable electronic devices, where people need high power long life batteries capable of providing continuous power support while at home, work or on move. This the main reason behind the popularity of rechargeable batteries.