On thermal safety characteristics of rechargeable alkaline batteries based on zinc and manganese dioxideRojas Alva, Wilson Ulises (Avtor) Mancini, Lucia (Avtor) Mauko Pranjić, Alenka (Avtor) Marini, Emanuele (Avtor) Bozzini, Benedetto (Avtor) rechargeable alkaline batterythermal runawaybattery degradationMnO2ZnzincX-ray microtomographyAs lithium-ion technology's exhibits inherent issues with safety due to thermal runaway, a sustainable and cheaper alternative has been proposed in this work: the rechargeable alkaline battery chemistry. However, so far, the postulated safety of the new battery chemistry has not been demonstrated adequately. Therefore, a safety study is being carried out for rechargeable alkaline battery cells. This Short Communication paper is the first report on the thermal safety of Zn-MnO₂ CR2032 rechargeable alkaline battery coin cells. 100% charged coin cells were tested under thermal abuse conditions in a gravity-convection furnace to quantify the temperature at which the cell would go into thermal runaway. Morphological characterisation of pristine and tested cells was performed via laboratory-based X-ray computed microtomography. The onset temperature to thermal runaway for the rechargeable alkaline battery cells was found to be in the range of 290-380 °C, much higher than that reported in the literature for lithium-ion cells (150-200 °C) of similar capacity and geometry. These results emphasise that rechargeable alkaline battery technology has improved thermal stability compared to lithium-ion technology. Lastly, morphological analyses highlighted the variations of cell geometry brought about by thermal testing.Institution of Chemical Engineers20252025-05-23 08:48:45Neznano22500sl© 2025 The Authors