These are scientifically-backed methods to prevent battery degradation based on the characteristics of lithium-ion batteries.
Battery degradation is a nightmare for users of electronic devices such as smartphones, tablets, or laptops. There is a plethora of information online offering advice on how to use smartphones to prolong battery life. However, most of these guides require users to disable certain features or uninstall specific apps. As a result, users miss out on the full power their smartphones can deliver.
Instead of such recommendations, PhoneArena offers some characteristics and tests of lithium-ion batteries. From this, practical advice and guidelines to protect the battery are provided.
Characteristics of Lithium-Ion Batteries
1. Charging Voltage Affects Battery Lifespan
According to experimental data, when charging a battery that can withstand a maximum voltage of 4.2V, the battery will have a usage cycle of 300 – 500 times, and the usage efficiency will reach 100% if charged precisely at 4.2V.
The relationship between charging voltage, usage cycles, and battery efficiency.
If charged with a lower voltage (4.1V), the battery can achieve 600 – 1,000 usage cycles but will only have 90% efficiency.
In cases of charging with even lower voltage (4V), the usage cycles increase to 1,000 – 2,000, but efficiency drops to 80%.
Similarly, charging at 3.92V yields 2,400 – 4,000 cycles with 75% efficiency.
2. The Relationship Between Discharge and Battery Capacity
Your battery will last longer if you charge it more frequently and avoid completely draining it. The table below shows the battery cycles corresponding to different discharge levels before the battery capacity decreases by 30%.
The relationship between discharge rate and usage cycles.
For example, if you often discharge your phone battery to 0%, it will only achieve 300 – 500 cycles before its storage capacity drops to 70%. Conversely, if you charge your battery regularly, it will serve you longer.
Recommendations
1. Charge Multiple Times Instead of Fully
Instead of charging your battery to 100% each time, you should charge it to a certain level, for example, from 30% to 60% or from 45% to 79%. This may be a bit inconvenient as it requires multiple charges throughout the day, but it can help extend battery life.
2. Avoid Deep Discharge
Always maintain some energy in your battery instead of letting it drain to 0% before recharging. That remaining energy can help manage the cells in the battery while waiting for the user to plug it in.
3. Batteries Operate Best at 40%
The optimal state for lithium-ion batteries is when they have 40% energy left. This is also why batteries in newly shipped devices often contain 40% – 50% energy.
4. Avoid Extreme Temperatures
Batteries can lose up to 80% of their operational capacity if stored at 60 degrees Celsius for one year, while at 20 degrees Celsius, the capacity decrease is only about 20%. Similarly, extremely low temperatures, such as in freezing environments, are also detrimental to the battery’s lifespan.
5. Do Not Let the Battery Stay Depleted for Too Long
Typically, lithium-ion batteries are considered depleted when they drop to a voltage level of 3V/cell. At 2.7V/cell, the protection circuit will switch the battery to sleep mode, causing it to lose the ability to recharge over time.
Therefore, during use or when storing the battery, you should pay attention to the recommended good capacity level of 40%.
