Battery processing

Once received at a secondary smelter, a lead-acid battery undergoes several processing stages to recover and treat the various component parts. In most modern plants, automatic battery breakers are used to process and recover these parts. There are many variations to battery-breaking operations throughout the world, although the outputs obtained from each operation are similar, namely, battery pastes, metallic fractions, acid, plastic components. 

Two manufacturers of processing equipment are Engitech Impianti CX [4] and Battery Recycling Industries (formerly MA Industries) (Fig. 15.1). These companies supply whole battery-breaking operations or selected machinery for parts of the process, as required by the smelter. Smelters often build auxiliary equipment for their own operations, because battery feedstock, product recovery or furnace feed requirements may demand dilferent equipment from that available off-the-shelf. 

Before being processed, the batteries are drained of their free acid, and this is pumped to a separate plant. In most plants, the acid is neutralized with either calcium or sodium hydroxide  

The gypsum produced in reaction (15.1) is disposed of at a secured landfill site whilst the water, often required to be slightly alkaline, is sent to a sewer. For processes using sodium hydroxide, depending upon the environmental requirements, the sodium sulfate is sent to a sewer or recovered as a soKd, via an evaporator/crystallization process, and sold for uses such as household detergent. Other plants have found outlets for the dilute acid in areas such as alkali waste neutralization. 

The first major battery-breaking step is the dismantling or breaking of the battery to gain access to the lead units. There are numerous ways to do this, but the most common approach is via a hammer mill or roller crushers. The fragmented product is fed to a sink/float or hydrodynamic separator where the fractions are sorted. In the basic sink/float cell, the plastic fractions are floated off and removed to the plastics recovery section whilst the lead-bearing portions of metallics and compounds sink to the bottom and are removed via conveyors or other means, for further 

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This brief review has concentrated on the development of the production methods of brass in Europe, but it must be remembered that a number of other dates are important in the history of the various manufacturing processes, such as ca. AD 1697 for the introduction of the rolling mill to replace the battery process, which, however, continued in use in some places to the end of the 18th Century. 

Investigation into the battery processing was initiated. Comparative GC/MS analysis of peeling and non-peeling areas of the labels indicated that the peeling areas contained phthalates and palmitic acid. Both act as plasticizers in the pressure sensitive adhesive used for these labels. Since the labels are printed in a continuous process, it was unlikely that only specific areas would be affected. This was consistent with the observed low frequency of label peeling, and eliminated the deposition of adhesive as a potential root cause. 

Batteries. Processes in batteries and car lead accumulators can now be examined and clearly interpreted. In a Feclanche battery, there is a zinc container, which represents the negative pole. The positive pole is formed by a graphite rod, which is surrounded from a mixture of carbon and manganese dioxide (see Fig. 8.5). 

Quantilics of Spent Batteries Processed for Recycling Prom EU Countries... 

The recycling rate for Ni-Cd batteries is the ratio between the quantity of batteries processed for recycling over the quantity of spent Ni-Cd batteries generated at source and introduced in the waste stream by the end-user. 

The quantity of used batteries processed in recycling plants in Europe can be described by the following equation ... 

Ni-Cd battery processing and recycling involves a number of processes, including physical component separation and applying chemical and/or thermal stresses to the resulting materials. Some of these materials are toxic, and these operations involve a number of workplace dangers. Thus, these facilities are technically sophisticated and costly to operate. Most nations require that operators obtain and comply with hazardous waste treatment, storage and disposal facility permits. 

The original Toxco facility near Trail, British Columbia began as a 33,000 square foot warehouse on 11 acres of land. Only 15,000 square feet was used as battery processing and the rest remained storage space. This facility has since grown to over... 

Pfaflf, R. 1990. Material recycling of polypropylene fi-om automotive batteries—process and... 

Toxicology TLV 0.15 mg (Pb)/m of air toxic material moderately toxic by ingestion, intraperitoneal route skin irritant Uses In storage batteries processing aid in rubber compounding Manuf./Distrib. Chemson Ltd http //WWW. chemson. co. uk... 

Lisbona, D. Snee, T., A review of hazards associated with primary lithium and Uthium-ion batteries, Process Safety and Environmental Protection 2011, 89, 434-442. 

PlalF, R. 1990. Material recycling of polypropylene from automotive batteries—process and equipment. In Second International Symposium, J. H. L. Van Linden, ed., pp. 37-36. The Mineral, Metals and Materials Society, Warrendale, PA. 

The sulfuric acid solution used in lead-acid batteries is a kind of conductive electrolyte. This electrolyte not only serves as the ion conductor, but is also widely used in lead-acid battery processes such as mixing the cream (wet paste), leaching the grid, and formatting the grid. The purity, density, and quantity of the sulfuric acid solution can strongly affect the processes of mixing the cream and formation as well as the performance of the battery. 

R. Pfafif, Material Recycling of Polypropylene from Automotive Batteries - Process and Equipment, II Int. S5unp., Ed. van Linden, The Mineral, Metals Materials Society 1990. 

Figure 3. Schematic of dry llthium-lon battery processing (Courtesy of Belloore).

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