Cylindrical vs. Prismatic vs. Pouch vs. Button-Type Lithium Batteries: A Comparative Analysis

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The packaging form of a lithium battery is crucial for its adaptation to different application scenarios, which is primarily determined by application requirements, cell performance, and cost control. Currently, the mainstream packaging forms include cylindrical, prismatic, pouch, and button types. Each type of packaging differs significantly in structural design, performance advantages, and applicable fields. The following is a detailed analysis from the perspectives of classification characteristics, core parameters, and application scenarios.

1. Cylindrical Lithium Batteries

(1) Structure and Manufacturing Process

Cylindrical lithium batteries feature a metal outer casing, with nickel-plated steel being the common material. Some high-end models adopt aluminum alloy to optimize heat dissipation. Internally, a winding structure is employed, where the positive electrode, negative electrode, and separator are wound into a cylindrical shape and enclosed in the metal casing. The standardization level is extremely high, and the model naming follows the core rule of “diameter + length” (both in mm). Examples include the 18650 (18mm in diameter, 65mm in length), 21700 (21mm in diameter, 70mm in length), and 26650 (26mm in diameter, 50mm in length).

(2) Core Characteristics

Advantages

• High Technical Maturity: The production process has undergone long-term verification, resulting in excellent yield and cell consistency, as well as strong stability in large-scale production.

• Significant Cost Advantage: Standardized sizes and production processes reduce R&D and manufacturing costs, making it the lowest-cost type among the three mainstream packaging forms.

• Balanced Performance: It possesses good mechanical strength and strong impact resistance; exhibits excellent heat dissipation performance without the need for additional complex heat dissipation designs; and has outstanding rate performance, supporting high-power charging and discharging.

Disadvantages

• Limited Energy Density: The high weight ratio of the metal casing leads to a lower specific energy compared to pouch batteries; the circular structure creates gaps during cell grouping, reducing the overall space utilization and energy density of the battery pack.

• Low Grouping Efficiency: Multiple cells need to be fixed with brackets to form a battery pack, which increases the weight and volume of the battery pack, and the assembly process is relatively cumbersome.

(3) Application Scenarios

• Consumer Electronics Field: Widely used in laptops, power banks, flashlights, electric shavers, Bluetooth speakers, and other devices. The 18650 model is a classic choice in this field due to its strong size adaptability.

• Power Battery Field: Early electric vehicles mostly used cylindrical batteries, such as the Tesla Model 3 equipped with a 21700 cylindrical battery pack; it is also applicable to small power equipment like power tools and toy models.

• Energy Storage Field: Some small energy storage devices and large containerized energy storage systems choose cylindrical batteries, and the standardized cells facilitate later maintenance and replacement.

2. Prismatic Lithium Batteries

(1) Structure and Manufacturing Process

Prismatic lithium-ion batteries take a hard shell as the main packaging component. The mainstream outer casing material is aluminum alloy, which combines light weight with good electrical conductivity and heat dissipation performance. A few early models used stainless steel (which has been gradually phased out due to its high weight and cost). The internal cells can adopt either a winding or lamination structure (the lamination structure can further improve space utilization, such as BYD’s Blade Battery). The outer casing is in the shape of a cuboid or cube, with an explosion-proof valve on the top, which can release pressure when the internal pressure of the battery is too high to avoid explosion risks.

(2) Core Characteristics

Advantages

• High Space Utilization: The rectangular structure is suitable for the regular internal spaces of various devices, with no obvious gaps during cell grouping. The overall energy density of the battery pack is higher than that of cylindrical batteries (the actual value is affected by specific designs).

• Outstanding Safety: The hard shell provides strong physical protection for the cells, resisting external impacts such as extrusion and puncture, and reducing the risks of liquid leakage and short circuits; combined with the explosion-proof valve design, it further enhances the safety in use.

• Adaptability to Modular Design: It is easy to integrate into battery modules and then combine into battery packs, adapting to advanced technologies such as the Cell to Pack (CTP) for electric vehicles, simplifying the battery pack structure and improving the system energy density.

Disadvantages

• Additional Heat Dissipation Management Required: The flat structure causes heat to easily accumulate locally, requiring the design of a dedicated heat dissipation system, which increases the design complexity and cost of the battery pack.

• Difficulty in Consistency Control: There are various types of lithium-ion batteries, and the degree of automated production of prismatic batteries is relatively low. The differences between individual cells are relatively large, which may lead to the service life of the battery pack being shorter than that of a single cell.

(3) Application Scenarios

• Consumer Electronics Field: Suitable for smartphones (such as early iPhones and some Android flagship models), tablets, and laptops (built-in batteries), as it can meet the thin and light design requirements of the devices.

• New Energy Vehicle Field: It is the current mainstream choice, such as BYD’s Blade Battery and CATL’s prismatic cells, which are widely used in various passenger cars and trucks; its high safety and space adaptability can meet the strict requirements of automobiles for batteries.

• Energy Storage and Special Fields: Large energy storage cabinets and backup power supplies for communication stations mostly use prismatic batteries; scenarios in medical equipment that require high stability and safety also often choose prismatic lithium-ion batteries.

3. Pouch Lithium Batteries

(1) Structure and Manufacturing Process

Pouch lithium-ion batteries have no rigid outer shell and use an aluminum-plastic composite film as the packaging material. This material consists of three layers: the outer layer is an outer protective layer made of nylon or PET (for scratch resistance and wear resistance), the middle layer is an aluminum foil barrier layer (to prevent electrolyte penetration and isolate oxygen and moisture), and the inner layer is a PP multi-functional layer (to ensure sealing performance). The internal cells mainly adopt a lamination structure (with high space utilization), and only metal tabs are reserved to draw out current. The thickness can be as low as 0.5-5mm, and the weight is 10%-20% lighter than that of hard-shell batteries with the same capacity. Some pouch batteries add a PET or PI insulating film on the basis of the aluminum-plastic film to form a multi-layer pouch structure, improving temperature resistance and puncture resistance.

(2) Core Characteristics

Advantages

• Highest Energy Density: Without the weight burden of a metal hard shell, combined with the space advantage of the lamination structure, the theoretical energy density ranks first among the three mainstream packaging forms, making it the first choice for scenarios pursuing lightweight and high energy density.

• Strong Design Flexibility: It can be customized into any shape and size according to the needs of the equipment, adapting to the irregular space designs of flexible screen devices and wearable devices, and meeting the differentiated product requirements.

• Unique Safety Features: When the internal pressure of the battery is too high, the aluminum-plastic film will “bulge” rather than explode, and the risk of liquid leakage is low (the aluminum foil layer effectively blocks the electrolyte); the light weight also reduces the overall load of the equipment.

• Relatively Simple Manufacturing Process: The production process consumes fewer resources, without the need for complex hard-shell processing procedures, and has cost-effectiveness in some scenarios (but the cost of customized models is relatively high).

Disadvantages

• Poor Mechanical Strength: Without hard-shell protection, it has weak impact and puncture resistance, requiring additional design of protective structures (such as outer casings and buffer materials), which increases the design cost and volume on the application side.

• High Customization Cost: Most pouch cells need to be customized according to the specific requirements of the equipment, with a low degree of standardization. Only a few manufacturers can provide customization services, making mass production difficult.

• Difficulty in Consistency Control: Flexible packaging has high requirements for production precision, and the performance consistency between individual cells is easily affected by the process, so strict cell screening is required during grouping.

(3) Application Scenarios

• Consumer Electronics Field: It is the core choice for smartphones (such as the Samsung Galaxy series and some thin and light Android models), smart watches, and Bluetooth headsets, as it can meet the thin, light, and miniaturized requirements of the devices; tablets, drones, and other equipment sensitive to weight also mostly use pouch batteries.

• New Energy Vehicle Field: Some high-end models (such as the GM Bolt and Nissan Leaf) choose pouch batteries to improve the vehicle’s driving range by leveraging their high energy density; future flexible automotive electronic equipment will also rely on the customization advantages of pouch batteries.

• Emerging and Special Fields: Cutting-edge products such as flexible electronic devices and wearable medical monitors require the flexibility and thinness of pouch batteries; customized pouch lithium-ion batteries are also used in implantable medical devices (such as some small monitoring devices).

4. Button Lithium Batteries

(1) Structure and Manufacturing Process

Button lithium-ion batteries are designed with miniaturization and thinness as the core. The outer shell is made of metal (mostly stainless steel) and is in the form of a circular thin shell. The internal part is a flat cell with a small capacity. Common models are named after “diameter + thickness” (both in mm), such as the CR2032 (20mm in diameter, 3.2mm in thickness). Some models support charging, while most are primary batteries.

(2) Core Characteristics

Advantages

• Compact Size: The ultra-thin and ultra-small size can adapt to equipment with extremely limited space, making it the only choice for microelectronic devices.

• Adaptability to Low-Power Scenarios: It has stable discharge performance, can provide continuous and stable current for low-power equipment, and meets the needs of long-term use.

Disadvantages

• Extremely Low Capacity: Limited by volume, the energy storage capacity is much lower than that of cylindrical, prismatic, and pouch batteries, and it cannot meet the requirements of high power and high capacity.

• Some Are Non-Rechargeable: Most button batteries are primary batteries and need to be replaced after use, so the long-term use cost may be higher than that of rechargeable models; rechargeable button batteries are more expensive and have a limited range of applications.

(3) Application Scenarios

• Microelectronic Devices: Electronic watches, calculators, and car remote keys are the most typical application scenarios, as they can accurately fit into the tiny internal spaces of the devices.

• Medical and Industrial Fields: Small medical equipment (such as hearing aids and portable blood glucose monitors), motherboard CMOS batteries, and small industrial sensors all rely on button lithium-ion batteries for power supply.

• Consumer Electronics Accessories: Some low-power accessories such as small toys, electronic gifts, and smart cards also use button batteries.

5.Comparison of Core Parameters of the Four Types of Lithium Batteries

Comparison Dimension	Cylindrical lithium battery	Prismatic lithium battery	Pouch lithium battery	Button lithium battery
Theoretical Energy Density	Medium (lower than pouch, higher than prismatic)	Medium (slightly lower than cylindrical, affected by design)	Highest	Lowest
Cost	Lowest (standardized production)	Medium (increased by hard shell and heat dissipation design)	Medium to High (high cost for customized models)	Low (for primary models) / High (for rechargeable models)
Safety	High (impact resistance of metal shell)	Highest (hard shell + explosion-proof valve)	Medium (additional protection required)	Medium (small volume, limited scope of risk impact)
Weight	Medium (high weight ratio of metal shell)	Medium (lightweight aluminum alloy shell)	Lightest (no hard shell)	Lightest (smallest volume)
Design Flexibility	Low (fixed circular size)	Medium (rectangle adapts to regular space)	Highest (customizable to any shape)	Low (fixed circular thin shell)
Grouping Efficiency	Low (requires bracket fixing, with gaps)	High (no gaps, adaptable to modularization)	High (can be designed to fit the space)	Low (mostly used as a single cell)

6. Selection Logic of Packaging Forms

The selection of lithium battery packaging forms is essentially a balance among application requirements, performance requirements, and costs:

• Consumer Electronics Field: Pouch or cylindrical batteries are preferred. Pouch batteries are suitable for thin, light, and flexible designs (such as smartphones and wearable devices), while cylindrical batteries, with their advantages of low cost and standardization, are applicable to devices such as power banks and power tools.

• New Energy Vehicle Field: Prismatic and pouch batteries are the mainstream directions. Prismatic batteries meet the needs of most vehicle models with their high safety and space adaptability, while pouch batteries help high-end models improve driving range with their high energy density. Some models (such as Tesla) still retain the application of cylindrical batteries.

• Energy Storage Field: Prismatic batteries have become the first choice for large energy storage cabinets due to their strong stability and adaptability to modular energy storage systems; small energy storage devices can choose cylindrical or pouch batteries according to cost and weight requirements.

• Micro Low-Power Field: Button lithium batteries are the only choice, such as those used in electronic watches and motherboard CMOS batteries. Their compact size and stable discharge characteristics can meet the special needs of such scenarios.

In conclusion, each of the four lithium battery packaging forms has its own advantages and disadvantages, and there is no absolute “optimal solution”. A comprehensive decision must be made based on the core demands of specific application scenarios (such as energy density, safety, cost, and size) to jointly support the development of the consumer electronics, new energy, and energy storage fields.