leakage of batteries overtime

I am sure you guys are curious about things. However, do you know whydoes a dry cell leak over a long period of time? Let me give you a brief summary of the question.

Firstly, you must understand how a battery works before knowing what causes it to leak. The common batteries that each and everyone of us use everyday is known as zinc-carbon dry cells.

A zinc-carbon dry cell consists of a zinc casing and a carbon rod in the centre. The zinc casing holds a paste made of different materials. The zic casing and the chemical paste react with each other. This chemical reaction produces tiny particles called electrons. When an appliance is connected to the battery, the electronstravel from the dry cell to the metal contacts of the appliance. The non stop flow of electrons produces electricity which makes the appliance works.

Even if the dry cell is not in use, the zinc casing continues to react with the chemicals in the battery. Once the chemicals are used up, leaking process begins. The reason is that the zinc casing gets dissolved away. The liquid which leaks out is corrosivw and can cause damage to our fingers if we touch it.

That is the basic understanding of why dry cells leak.