German scientist, Dr. Carl Gassner, was issued a U.S. patent (No. 373,064), the first in the U.S. for a "dry" cell. Gassner had already patented his invention in Germany (No. 37,758) on 8 Apr 1886, and also in Austria, Belgium, England, France and Hungary in the same year. The sealed zinc shell which contained all the chemicals was also the negative electrode. Later, he improved the shelf life of the battery by adding zinc chloride to the electrolyte to reduce corrosion of the zinc shell. Gassner's battery was much like the carbon-zinc, general-purpose batteries sold today. By 1896, the National Carbide Company (later Union Carbide and Eveready) produced the first consumer dry cell battery. Two years later, the company made the first D cell.

A U.S. patent was issued for an alkaline dry-cell to P.A. Marsal, Karl Kordesch and Lewis F. Urry who assigned it to the Union Carbide Corporation, the manufacturer of Eveready batteries (No. 2,960,558). Compared to the existing carbon-zinc dry-cells, it offered an appreciable increase in life-span and efficiency during heavy continuous drains. Its construction used an alkaline electrolyte, manganese dioxide as depolarizer, a zinc powder-gel anode, and certain additives such including mercury and electrolyte-creep inhibitors. The patent gave practical details for commercial production. The patent claimed that whereas four cells in series of the carbon-zinc type gave 4.5 volts to power a 1.25-amp bulb for 45-min to 1-hr, the new alkaline design gave good brilliance after 6 to 7 hours.