Make batteries from old capacitors

Can a super capacitor replace a battery?

A super capacitor normally has a capacitance of between 1 to 3000 farads, which make them good substitutes for batteries! We are going to safely charge 2x 400 farad capacitors in series up to 5.4VDC, and feed that voltage through a DC-DC booster circuit.

Should I use a battery or a capacitor?

It depends on the expected lifetime you need. If you are going to have more than tens of thousands of power fail events, then capacitors would assure you of a longer life, useful if it was an unattended situation like a remote island. However a battery would be so much smaller, cheaper and easier to use, that's the way I would go.

How do you reform a capacitor?

Such capacitors must be "reformed". This process consists of applying rated voltage through a resistance (about 30,000 ohms, five watt) for five minutes plus one minute for each month of storage (see figure 6). As the capacitor reforms, the voltage across the resistor will drop (measured at the Xs in Figure 6).

How does a capacitor charging circuit work?

The capacitor charging circuit is simple: a series resistor R1 to limit charge current through D1 into the capacitor bank C2. If the power-up events are rare, the energy loss on R1 is not substantial and doesn't have undue impact on the energy efficiency of the device.

Can old electrolytic capacitors be saved?

claim that most old electrolytics can be saved if the correct procedure is followed, regardless of how long they have been unused. Such capacitors must be "reformed". This process consists of applying rated voltage through a resistance (about 30,000 ohms, five watt) for five minutes plus one minute for each month of storage (see figure 6).

Where did the electrolytic capacitor come from?

The Electrolytic Capacitor The origin of the electrolytic capacitor or condenser can be traced to the second half of the 19th century when the discovery was made that film can be formed on aluminum electrochemically and that it will exhitbit unidirectional electrical conductance and other peculiar properties.