# What does a brand new 9v alkaline battery supposed to actually measure? ~9.6v?



## Clint S.

I can't believe this place has no "General" or "Off-topic" forums.







So I have to ask this here:


Can anyone please tell me what the *actual measured voltage* is of a *new* 9v alkaline battery? I don't have any around here right now, but I think I remember them being around 9.6 or 9.7v? I'm wondering about this because I just got in some "brand new" Energizer Industrial 9v alkaline and they are all measuring only 9.38v which seems low to me.


Thanks.


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## Colm

According to the Energizer Battery Application Manual, a new 1.5V cell typically has an open circuit voltage of 1.58V. A nine volt battery has six cells, so a new would have an open circuit voltage of 9.48V. A reading of 9V indicates a battery with no to less than 10% discharge. FWIW they do self discharge at about 2% a year. It is always a good idea to check the date on the package to get the freshest ones available. But your batteries sound just fine.


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## MrBobb




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *Clint S.* /forum/post/20920957
> 
> 
> they are all measuring only 9.38v which seems low to me.



And the problem is.....?


Different battery chemistry will give you slightly different voltage. NiCd is known to give u 1.45 instead of the expected 1.56, and some remotes can't deal with that. 9.38 and 9.6 is closet enough for me. I don't think the 9V devices are that picky.


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## olyteddy




> Quote:
> NiCd is known to give u 1.45 instead of the expected 1.56,



???? (The OP was asking about Alkaline, anyway)...


> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *Wikipedia* /forum/post/0
> 
> 
> Nickel-cadmium cells have a nominal cell potential of 1.2 volts (V). This is lower than the 1.5 V of alkaline and zinc-carbon primary cells, and consequently they are not appropriate as a replacement in all applications. However, the 1.5 V of a primary alkaline cell refers to its initial, rather than average, voltage. Unlike alkaline and zinc–carbon primary cells, a NiCd cell's terminal voltage only changes a little as it discharges. Because many electronic devices are designed to work with primary cells that may discharge to as low as 0.90 to 1.0 V per cell, the relatively steady 1.2 V of a NiCd is enough to allow operation. Some would consider the near-constant voltage a drawback as it makes it difficult to detect when the battery charge is low.


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## Clint S.




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *Colm* /forum/post/20922086
> 
> 
> According to the Energizer Battery Application Manual, a new 1.5V cell typically has an open circuit voltage of 1.58V. A nine volt battery has six cells, so a new would have an open circuit voltage of 9.48V.



Thanks for the reply and info. New AA and AAA alkalines I get are about 1.65v out the package (various brands). Evidently Energizers are less than that. 9.38v is still a bit away from 9.48v. (Which makes a big difference in a smoke alarm for example).




> Quote:
> It is always a good idea to check the date on the package to get the freshest ones available. But your batteries sound just fine.



I got these online so I couldn't check, and like most they didn't tell you. But the date on them is 03-2016.


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## Clint S.




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *MrBobb* /forum/post/20922537
> 
> 
> And the problem is.....?










Did I not already cover that in my OP and what you quoted? "_...they are all measuring only 9.38v *which seems low to me*_*."* And: "_I think I remember them_" [other new 9v] "_being around *9.6 or 9.7v*?"_ So _that_ is "the problem".




> Quote:
> 9.38 and 9.6 is closet enough for me. I don't think the 9V devices are that picky.



It depends on the app and the device. In a radio for example, 9.38v is fine. But in something like a smoke alarm, or wireless motion detector, that equates to less *usable* time.


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## olyteddy

BTW, open circuit voltage is not much of an indicator of battery health. You should test them under a load. For a 9 volt battery you might use a 500 ohm .5 watt resistor, which will load the battery to 18 ma.


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## Clint S.




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *olyteddy* /forum/post/20925984
> 
> 
> BTW, open circuit voltage is not much of an indicator of battery health. You should test them under a load. For a 9 volt battery you might use a 500 ohm .5 watt resistor, which will load the battery to 18 ma.



I guess I could try that, but I'm still left with no other new alkaline batteries to which I can compare the readings.


Another BTW, I have some *10+ year old* Panasonic 'heavy duty' (that's *non*-alkaline) 9v that are about 9.3v, _about same as the *brand new* Energizer Industrial._










I would have thought by now someone reading this forum would have some new 9v alkalines and a meter and they could check it.


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## MrBobb




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *Clint S.* /forum/post/20925304
> 
> 
> But in something like a smoke alarm, or wireless motion detector, that equates to less *usable* time.



You don't know that.


Often, the manufacturer makes available a energy depletion over time graph, and not all makes are identical, although all Alkalines should be similar but your Industrial one maybe has a slightly different chemical formulation.


Once I got some Industrial type AA also, they lasted longer on my remote although I didn't bother to measure their voltages.


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## MrBobb




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *olyteddy* /forum/post/20924944
> 
> 
> ???? (The OP was asking about Alkaline, anyway)...



And he also says he got the Alkaline "Industrial". If I told u Industrial=special Alkaline formulation, would that make u feel better?


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## Colm




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *Clint S.* /forum/post/20925300
> 
> 
> 9.38v is still a bit away from 9.48v. (Which makes a big difference in a smoke alarm for example).



It is a hair over 1% difference, hardly significant. As I mentioned above, anything from 9.0V up means somewhere between no and 10% discharge, and yours are within 1% of the manufacturer's specification for a battery right off the line. And as mentioned above by another, open circuit voltage is not a good indicator of battery state to start with. You would need to do a load test to know anything useful.


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## Colm




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *MrBobb* /forum/post/20926874
> 
> 
> And he also says he got the Alkaline "Industrial". If I told u Industrial=special Alkaline formulation, would that make u feel better?



In the case of Energizer alkaline batteries, I believe the only difference is the label and the bulk packaging.


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## MrBobb




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *Colm* /forum/post/20927046
> 
> 
> In the case of Energizer alkaline batteries, I believe the only difference is the label and the bulk packaging.



Do u have industry insider information on this?


Am not promoting this type of cell, it just happens one time I ordered some $10 stuff from Digikey, and it seems like a waste to pay $10 shipping for a $10 dollar item, so I purchased some of those industrial battery from them to bulk up the order. That's all.


But this thread... much Ado for nuthing.


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## Colm




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *MrBobb* /forum/post/20928263
> 
> 
> Do u have industry insider information on this?.



Yes, if by industry insider you mean user. Do you?


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## olyteddy




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *MrBobb* /forum/post/20926874
> 
> 
> And he also says he got the Alkaline "Industrial". If I told u Industrial=special Alkaline formulation, would that make u feel better?



Not about you missing the NiCd voltage by 20%....


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## Clint S.




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *MrBobb* /forum/post/20926862
> 
> 
> You don't know that.



?? But I *do* know that. One that reads 9.3v in a smoke alarm will start "chirping" much sooner than one that's 9.6v. I see that happen all the time, which is my point on these batteries reading only 9.38v.


However, (like you mentioned below), it is 'possible' a *really good* 9v @9.38v could have _a lower depletion rate and less steep of a curve on a graph_ than that of a cheap 9v @9.6v. "Possible".




> Quote:
> Often, the manufacturer makes available a energy depletion over time graph, and not all makes are identical, although all Alkalines should be similar but your Industrial one maybe has a slightly different chemical formulation.



Yeah I saw that for the Energizer EN22 , but without those graphs for *other* batteries to which to compare it, it has little meaning.


At the bottom of the PDF they even have the "ACCELERATED SMOKE DETECTOR" test but with no other 9v to compare it to, it's rather irrelevant.







(Unless someone is already familiar with these characteristics of _other_ 9v batteries).




> Quote:
> Once I got some Industrial type AA also, they lasted longer on my remote although I didn't bother to measure their voltages.



Good to know.


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## Clint S.




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *Colm* /forum/post/20922086
> 
> 
> According to the Energizer Battery Application Manual, a new 1.5V cell typically has an open circuit voltage of 1.58V. A nine volt battery has six cells, so a new would have an open circuit voltage of 9.48V.



Do you remember where you saw this manual? I don't see any "Industrial" in their " Alkaline Application Manual ".


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## Colm

 Here is an older version with a little more info. I don't think there is a separate application manual for the industrial version because they are the same thing with different label and bulk packaging. Look here .


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## Clint S.




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *Colm* /forum/post/20930778
> 
> Here is an older version with a little more info. I don't think there is a separate application manual for the industrial version because they are the same thing with different label and bulk packaging. Look here .



Thanks for the links.


This is not true about them being bulk only:


"_Did you know that the technical specifications for both the Energizer battery and Energizer Industrial battery are the exact same? The Energizer Industrial battery line is not packaged for retail sale, and is designed for industrial, professional use. Energizer Industrial batteries are packaged in bulk for the volume user, and are not sold in retail blister packs._"


You _can indeed_ get them retail blister packed.


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## olyteddy

 http://www.datasheets.org.uk/6LR61*-datasheet.html


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## Colm

And the reason for posting a link to a page with links to a bunch of Panasonic datasheets when we are talking about Energizer Industrial is?


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## olyteddy

Quote:

And the reason for posting a link to a page with links to a bunch of Panasonic datasheets when we are talking about Energizer Industrial is?
Uh, because it has a lot more than just Panasonic, and the OP wants info on more than just the one you linked...

Quote:

Yeah I saw that for the Energizer EN22, but without those graphs for other batteries to which to compare it, it has little meaning.


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## Clint S.




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *olyteddy* /forum/post/20932394
> 
> 
> Uh, because it has a lot more than just Panasonic, and the OP wants info on more than just the one you linked...



Yes, thanks, I'm downloading and reading them now......(until I was stopped by those frickin' annoying Captchas.







)


BTW & FYI, Looks like the Panasonic Industrial like the Energizer Industrial are the same as the regular alkaline, they just change the packaging! That doesn't make any sense. Why spend all those extra millions in marketing and packaging if they are the same when the $$ could be put to better use in another area. ??? Such as for example; _rechargeable_ batteries with the same voltage or higher voltage than alkaline. (Like PowerGenix has done).


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## Clint S.




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *Clint S.* /forum/post/20933448
> 
> 
> Yes, thanks, I'm downloading and reading them now......(until I was stopped by those frickin' annoying Captchas.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> )



While I _still_ have no idea if 9.38v is good or typical, I see in the PDF files that the Panasonic is a better battery, at least in the "Accelerated Smoke Detector" tests. At 5, 10, and 15 days they are the same, but at 20 days they are at about 7.55 and 7.6v, then at 25 days 7.0 and 7.5v, with the Panasonic having higher #'s.


I don't see that test in the Duracell PDF's.









*One* of the Energizers was 9.40v and I put it in a smoke detector about 1-2 days ago. It now measures 9.385v. _*If* that rate continues_, the battery will start chirping in only a matter of weeks! It will be down .45v at the end of 30 days!


FWIW, in the detector it measures 9.38v.


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## Clint S.

I just found a new-in-package Fuji alkaline 9v and it measures 9.30v. But the use-by date on it is 7-2012, someone bought it a few weeks ago at a Dollar Store (Big Lots) so it may be low because it's old. ? (Date on the Energizers is 3-2016).


In the smoke detector it still measures 9.30v.


I have resistors laying around so I'll see if I can find a ~500 ohm and test them.


Interesting that the Fuji appears to be a "better" battery. The Energizer says a 5-yr shelf life @ only 80%. The Fuji says *7*-yr @*85%*.

*If* one _could_ extrapolate the voltage and use-by date; the Energizers are "new", apparently made a few months ago (in March) since there's still about 4.5yrs left on their date, = 9.38v. The Fuji, apparently, possibly made in 2005 (use-by date 2012/7yr shelf life), only less than a year "left", technically 10 months, = 9.30v. If, *IF*, that data can be used, it would indeed seem the Fuji is a better battery, being so much older at 6yrs Vs about 6 months, yet only .08v different.


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## Clint S.




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *Clint S.* /forum/post/20933869
> 
> 
> I have resistors laying around so I'll see if I can find a ~500 ohm and test them.



Interesting. I found a 510 ohm, (wattage not labeled but huge, looks like about a 15-watt), and the Fuji measured .27v lower but the Energizer measured only .08v lower. After testing them which only took about 2 secs each, they dropped in measured voltage by about .01v.


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## olyteddy




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *Clint S.* /forum/post/20942958
> 
> 
> Interesting. I found a 510 ohm, (wattage not labeled but huge, looks like about a 15-watt), and the Fuji measured .27v lower but the Energizer measured only .08v lower. After testing them which only took about 2 secs each, they dropped in measured voltage by about .01v.



As I said, a much more meaningful way to measure a battery. Odds are after a rest they will overcome that .01V change.


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## Clint S.




> Quote:
> Originally Posted by *olyteddy* /forum/post/20943379
> 
> 
> As I said, a much more meaningful way to measure a battery. Odds are after a rest they will overcome that .01V change.



(Again), interesting. The Energizer is in a smoke alarm now so I can't check it again, but the Fuji is back to 9.30v.

Thanks.


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## Colm

Just a few comments...


Fuji makes good batteries. If you are going to keep batteries on a shelf for years, you might want to go with them. However, the self discharge rate, which determines shelf life, has little or nothing to do with how long they will last in service.


Comparing the open circuit voltage of two different brands of batteries is meaningless because of differences in formulation and construction. Comparing a single example of each is even less meaningful because the results are statistically meaningless. In other words, you cannot infer anything about the general population of the two brands by comparing a single example of each.


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## blue00civicsi

I work with Energizer Industrial batteries on a daily basis, they are a great heavy duty battery. A typical 9V Energizer Industrial battery will measure 9.30 V to 9.40 V brand new. The difference between a battery like the Energizer Industrial and other batteries is not voltage you get when the battery is brand new, it is the current output of the battery. All batteries are measured in mAh (milliamp hours), and just like voltage, the higher the number, the better. Cell phone batteries are a good example of this, your rechargeable cell phone battery will have a voltage output and a current output in mAh. For example, if the standard cell phone battery is: 2.7 V and 1400 mAh, the extended battery for the phone would be something like this: 2.7 V and 1700 mAh. So the Energizer Industrial batttery will have a much higher current output, therefore, the battery will last longer.


You can tell a difference if you buy a cheap dollar store battery, and even just compare the weight of the battery to the Engergizer Industrial. The voltage output of that brand new dollar store battery might be higher than the industrial, but it will definately not last half as long.


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## Clint S.

Thanks for the input.


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## Malaga

Clint S. said:


> I can't believe this place has no "General" or "Off-topic" forums.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> So I have to ask this here:
> 
> 
> Can anyone please tell me what the *actual measured voltage* is of a *new* 9v alkaline battery? I don't have any around here right now, but I think I remember them being around 9.6 or 9.7v? I'm wondering about this because I just got in some "brand new" Energizer Industrial 9v alkaline and they are all measuring only 9.38v which seems low to me.
> 
> 
> Thanks.


Yeah, so, I looked the info from the other comments and with that 2 %/year self discharge you can calculate approximation for the age of that battery: (9.48v - 9.38v)/9.48v=~1,055% from which already you can guess that the battery is more than 6 months ago manufactured. More precise calculation would be: 1,055/2*12m=~6 months and 10 days. Hope this clarifies things for you in the future.


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