Mercury-free batteries for all Seiko watches from June 2008

Seiko, the maker of new-age high-tech watches, encompassing the four timekeeping technologies - spring drive, mechanical, kinetic and quartz - has introduced mercury-free batteries preceding the changes in global button battery regulations, in a bid to minimise the hazardous environmental impact of mercury.

Mercury being a toxic and harmful substance, its use in batteries has been banned in most countries. However button-type watch batteries are an exception owing to the low levels of mercury they use and also due to mercury's anti corrosion properties. Mercury is used to check corrosion of zinc present within the battery; mercury also eradicates the creation of hydrogen gas that poses the threat of battery leakage.

Even now, the silver oxide batteries comprise about two per cent mercury by weight. Mercury-free batteries could ouster kilos of this hazardous metal entering the environment every year.

Seiko is known for its high-quality batteries and switching to mercury-free batteries would in no way affect their performance.

Seiko says that after passing through stringent quality tests, these mercury-free batteries can firmly ensure first-rate quality, keeping a stable voltage with low leakage. Moreover, they have sound preservation properties even in a wide temperature range.

Seiko Instruments Inc.'s new mercury-free silver oxide batteries are environment friendly with improved performance. New electrolyte has endowed these batteries with the capacity to work better even at low temperature range- minus 20ºc to 60ºc. Leakage resistance has also been increased by 50 per cent.

Installing mercury-free batteries from April 2007 Seiko watches had set a target of going completely mercury-free by June 2008.