A lithium-ion battery or Li-ion battery is a kind of rechargeable batteries. We used this kind of cells in our conventional portable electronic devices and vehicles. It has become famous for the military and aerospace use. It was first introduced to us by M. Stanley Whittingham in the 1990s. Now, Li-ion batteries have a wide variety of use in our household.
How to charge a Lithium-ion battery without a charger? Well, most of you would again ask if it is possible and we would say yes, we can charge a lithium-ion battery even without the charger and there are several methods on how to do it below.
Method 1: USB charger
Method 2: Cup chargers
Method 3: Chargers that uses solar energy
More Details On The Ways To Charge Lithium-Ion Battery Without A Using Charger
Lithium-ion batteries are common to all. We all use our mobile phones. These phones use Lithium-ion batteries. When our phone gets a low battery, and we have no chargers with us, we can resort to these good alternatives for charging our phones without using its chargers.
Method 1: USB Chargers
Not everyone knows that we can charge our phones through our laptop or desktop by using USB chargers. For example, you left your charger at home and you have something significant to use your phone too but you can’t because your battery is dead.
Since you are in the office and working in front of the computer, you can quickly charge your phone while you work.
Just connect the USB connector to your phone and plug it in the USB port of your laptop or desktop. Your phone will start charging while you continue working. It doesn’t have to be a laptop or desktop computer, any appliance you have with a USB port available can charge your Lithium-ion battery.
In doing this simple trick, you must charge your Lithium-ion battery inside the device or the mobile phone. You can check if it is charging by turning on your mobile phone and see if it is charging.
Method 2: Cup Chargers
There are plenty of alternatives when it comes to charging your Lithium-ion batteries without using a charger. The second best alternative way to do it is by using a clip charger. A clip charger became very popular in the old days.
It is a portable charger that can be adjusted to the distance of the terminal connectors to fit a particular battery model to charge. This type of charger is scarce to find these days, but just in case you get lucky in finding one, you will find it very useful. Cup chargers are convenient and very portable, you can bring it anywhere you go.
However, when you use this kind of charger, you have to take out the battery from the device. The battery needs to be mounted on the platform of the charger. Having this kind of charger, you will never worry about having a low battery again. You can always carry this portable charger with you anytime and anywhere.
The good thing about this charger is that you can always charge a spare battery to back up what you have in your device. You will never run out of cells to use when you have this kind of charger.
Method 3: Chargers That Uses Solar Energy
One method to charge your Lithoum-ion batteries without using its charger is by the use of natural energies, like solar energy. Solar power became famous as one of the sources of energy for modern devices like mobile phones, tablets, and other portable electronic devices. Solar energy is a potent source of energy.
You can use Lithium ion batteries by using a wind turbine charger or merely a crank charger that will ask minimal effort from you. Imagine charging your mobile phone batteries while grilling a BBQ, isn’t that a bright idea?
These types of chargers can be purchased almost anywhere. You can buy it at any phone shop. Another thing about this charger is that you can save a lot from your electric cost since what you are using are all natural energy.
Is It Also Good Idea To Charge Lithium Ion Battery With A Power Supply?
You can charge a battery by using a power supply manually. You should be able to use an adjustable voltage with current limiting. Power supply charging should be done manually because you must know load, and this cannot be left unattended. The termination charge is not automated.
I recommend that you charge these batteries because it is hard to detect a full charge battery for those which are nickel-based. Lead, and lithium-based batteries should be charged manually to avoid overheating.
Li-ion batteries have the same charging characteristics with a lead-acid battery. However, when you are using the power supply for charging, you need to practice and observe extra caution.
Be very careful in charging and check the full voltage charge. The most common voltage for a full load is at 4.20V per battery. Make sure that the cells in series will not exceed this set voltage.
Once it is fully charged, disconnect the batteries at once, never allow the battery to sit with a 4.20V longer than the fully charged status.
Can Lithium-Ion Batteries In Series Be Charged Without A Charger?
Generally speaking, Lithium ion batteries in series can be charged using its charger. The question on charging it in series without a charger can also be possible!
In a series connection, we add the voltage but not the Mah ratings. Using the above-given methods of charging without the use of a charger can also be possible but should be practiced with great caution.
Can Any Type Of Lithium Battery Be Charged Without A Charger?
Lithium-ion and Lithium polymer batteries have the same basic chemistry. Therefore, the charging methods for both batteries are the same too. The charging methods for Li-ion batteries can be adapted to Li-polymer cells and vice versa.
Lithium-ion batteries are more comfortable to charge. However, charging these batteries safely is more complicated. You need to charge it a constant current until the battery reaches its fully charged state. You need to include the charge time to ensure safety.
You need to remember that trickle charging will not work for a lithium battery. It only cannot accept overcharge. It will damage the battery.
With this idea at hand, I can say that all lithium batteries can be charged without a charger considering the facts that I mentioned above.
What Can Other Battery Type Be Charged With No Charger?
Some batteries can be charged without a charger. Aside from the Li-ion cells, we can name, which can also use the same procedures to charge it.
NiMH
Though it is not recommended to use and try other charging methods for this type. I can say that NiMH can be charged by using different means than its charger.
Some people have claimed using the power supply in charging this battery. It should display both the voltage and the current for your guidance and safety too. Remember that you are doing this by caution and on extreme emergency. Charging NiMH using power supply is not normal and should not be practiced regularly.
I only say that it is possible and must be done with caution!
Alkaline Battery
Alkaline batteries are the most original battery type to charge without using a conventional charger. These are the battery types we used for our flashlights, radios, calculators, and other household gadgets and appliance.
Alkaline batteries can be discharged, but we need it more often than other battery types. In case we need an Alkaline battery, and we have no charger around, we can easily do the simple hacks in charging without using a battery charger.
This type of batteries can accept charging process using other methods than a lithium-polymer array. You may use a benchtop power supply to charge this type of cell.
Lead-Acid Battery
We usually use a lead-acid battery in cars. Asking if we can charge it without using a charger, the answer would be a yes. Yes, it is possible to charge it without a battery charger. (If you like to know more about it, then read this article).
For lead-acid batteries, we usually do a jumpstart to give it a sufficient charge to run again. Jumpstarting is one of the best methods of charging a lead-acid battery when there is no charger available.
We do this jumpstarting method when we get stalled in the middle of the road. It is also one of the quickest ways to power up your car after being drained.
What Is The Best Way To Charge Lithium-Ion Batteries After All?
There are two ways of charging a Lithium-ion battery. The first stage is the Constant Current Charge, and the second stage is the Saturation Charge. We will discuss how each of these stages brings the best method of charging a Li-ion battery.
1. Constant Current Charge
It is the first stage when you charge a Li-ion battery where the charge current is controlled. It will be something in between .5 to 1.0 C. However, for some consumer based LCO batteries, .8 charge rate is recommended. The charge rate rises for the current charge. It will last for about an hour for this particular stage.
2. Saturation Charge
In the second stage, the Saturation Charge, the voltage is marked at 4.2V for an LCO cell, we call it the voltage peak. The battery is entering the second stage or the saturation charge. The charging is maintained at 4.2V, and the current will fall continuously up to around 10% of the current rate. Charge time for this stage will last for about two hours.
Having these two stages in mind, you can quickly determine the best charging method for a Lithium ion battery. The key is to maintain the voltage and current and to avoid overcharging it. Keeping it in mind will give you a lasting Lithium ion battery.
The process of how to charge a lithium ion battery without a charger is relatively easy and familiar. We have to remember the sensitivity of the Li-ion array. It needs constant monitoring and caution when charging it with some other ways.
Also, you can find out the best way to charge your lithium Ion batteries from this article!
