THE EFFECT OF PARTICLE-SIZE ON THE DISCHARGE PERFORMANCE OF A NICKEL-METAL HYDRIDE CELL

We investigate the effect of particle size on the discharge performanc e of a nickel-metal hydride cell with a mathematical model. Electrodes with uniform as well as with nonuniform particle sizes are studied. W ith uniform particle size, the dependence of the particle-to-particle resistance on the particle size is taken into account. The optimal par ticle size depends on the discharge rate. Moreover, we show that under certain conditions it is advantageous to use a nonuniform particle si ze. In general, the higher the discharge current density, the more the particle size affects the electrode performance.