The disclosed subject matter relates to batteries. More particularly, the disclosed subject matter relates to thermal batteries, methods of activating thermal batteries, and methods of providing safety control signals.
A battery is a device that converts chemical energy into electrical energy. The battery is classified into two categories: a primary battery that is a non-rechargeable battery and a secondary battery that is a rechargeable battery. The batteries are used in various applications, such as automobiles, electrical devices, military applications, aerospace applications, etc. to provide electrical voltage. Each application has specific requirements and based on the requirements, an explicit type of battery is used. For example, for military purposes, batteries having longer battery life are needed, for electric automobiles, rechargeable batteries are required, etc. A key example of the primary battery is a thermal battery. Some applications require the need of having the primary battery for their operations, which irreversibly transform chemical energy to electrical energy. In addition, when reactants of the thermal battery are exhausted, energy is not re-stored in the thermal battery. The thermal battery provides various advantages, such as longer shelf life such as longer than few years, require less time for activation, etc. Once activated, the thermal battery supplies electrical power from a few seconds to an hour or longer. The characteristics of the thermal battery permit the use of the thermal battery in various applications.