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Originally Posted by aerohead
I'm not familiar with an 'air' battery. Could you expand on that one?
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A common air battery are the zinc air batteries used in hearing aids. There are other types, with aluminum air batteries being one of the best for energy power pound
All batteries need two electrodes made out of different materials so they can react chemically. If you remove one of the electrodes, namely the much heavier cathode, and replace it with air the battery can become much lighter.
This is basically how a hydrogen fuel cell works, only a fuel cell keeps supplying the anode chemical too.
The problem with air batteries is they're a single use battery. Once unsealed and exposed to air the anode begins to decay. So they might work for an emergency trip that requires a lot of electric energy in a small, lightweight package.