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Where Can I Recycle Car Batteries

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Why It’s So Hard To Recycle Electric-Car Batteries | World Wide Waste

Along with free fluid recycling and battery recycling, OReilly Auto Parts also provides several other free store services, including free Check Engine light testing, wiper blade and bulb installation, battery testing, and starter and alternator testing. Stop by a local OReilly Auto Parts store and chat with one of our knowledgeable parts professionals to learn more about our free store services.

Setting Up A Recycling Sector That Can Adapt Alongside Evolving Technologies

Establishing a recycling sector will also require an economic model capable of adapting to the range of battery technologies, without having to use a large number of different recycling processes.

Lastly, it must be noted that these environmental impact and recycling issues are not simple to tackle, as the technologies have not yet reached maturity and their long-term sustainability is not yet guaranteed. LIBs evolve very quickly with lithium-metal battery technologies now being designed, for example and we are even seeing the arrival of competing technologies without lithium, such as sodium-ion.

For all these reasons, the environmental, economic and social impacts of manufacturing and recycling EV batteries and their materials must continue to be studied. It is essential to keep applying grassroots and legislative pressure to obtain transparency around manufacturing processes, so that we can quantify their impacts and identify ways to limit them. Forthcoming European research programmes are also positioned in this area, including the environmental dimension of new battery development.

However, we should not just sit around waiting for some miraculous, clean, high-performing and cheap battery technology, which is more like a pipe dream. It is important that we slow down the growth in EV battery size, and therefore limit the power, mass and autonomy of the vehicles themselves.

This translation was created by the Université Gustave-Eiffel.

Electric Cars: What Will Happen To All The Dead Batteries

“The rate at which we’re growing the industry is absolutely scary,” says Paul Anderson from University of Birmingham.

He’s talking about the market for electric cars in Europe.

“It’s something that’s never really been done before at that rate of growth for a completely new product,” says Dr Anderson, who is also the co-director of the Birmingham Centre for Strategic Elements and Critical Materials.

While electric vehicles may not emit any carbon dioxide during their working lives, he’s concerned about what happens when they run out of road – in particular what happens to the batteries.

“In 10 to 15 years when there are large numbers coming to the end of their life, it’s going to be very important that we have a recycling industry,” he points out.

While most EV components are much the same as those of conventional cars, the big difference is the battery. While traditional lead-acid batteries are widely recycled, the same can’t be said for the lithium-ion versions used in electric cars.

EV batteries are larger and heavier than those in regular cars and are made up of several hundred individual lithium-ion cells, all of which need dismantling. They contain hazardous materials, and have an inconvenient tendency to explode if disassembled incorrectly.

Recent proposals from the European Union would see EV suppliers responsible for making sure that their products aren’t simply dumped at the end of their life, and manufacturers are already starting to step up to the mark.

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How Do Lithium Car Batteries Work

Most electric vehicles run on lithium-ion batteries. Each cell of a lithium battery generates electricity when its lithium ions move from one side through an electrolyte to the other side . The lithium in the anode is cheap and ubiquitous, although its extraction is not without its issues, however, the cathode contains valuable metals like nickel, manganese, and cobalt, on which the performance of the battery heavily relies.

It is the mining of these precious metals that has a greater environmental and social impact for example, in fueling conflict and child labour in metal-rich countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo, where almost two-thirds of the worlds cobalt mining takes place.

Because of these concerns, researchers have focused on finding ways to phase out cobalt use in lithium batteries. There has been some success start-up TexPower in the US has found an effective way of cutting out cobalt without compromising on efficacy, while EV trailblazer Tesla plans to stop using cobalt altogether over the next few years.

But while these raw material developments make the manufacture of lithium-ion batteries more sustainable, the impact on recycling is less straightforward.

Does Batteries Plus Offer Car Battery Recycling For Businesses

Recycle My Battery  Non

Batteries Plus offers battery and light bulb recycling as one of the benefits of our business account program. If your company maintains its own fleet of vehicles, consider . It’s completely free to join and, once you do, you’ll receive access to a number of additional benefits, including volume discount pricing, shipping options and access to your own dedicated advisor. Learn more about “.”

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Recycle Your Car Battery At Oreilly & Get A $10 Gift Card

Not only can we recycle batteries for personal watercrafts, lawn care equipment, and motorcycles, but recycling an undamaged* battery can earn you a $10 OReilly Auto Parts gift card. Simply bring in a qualifying battery that is not a core return from a previous purchase, and trade in a dead car battery for a $10 gift card toward your next purchase at OReilly. Its important to note that there is a limit of 5 batteries that can be recycled per day per customer, except in Florida and California. Florida customers may recycle 2 batteries per day, whereas California customers have a limit of 6 batteries recycled per day. Make the most of a non-working, non-core battery by bringing your old car battery to a local OReilly Auto Parts. We can correctly dispose of car batteries, and you can earn a $10 gift card toward your next project or repair.*Undamaged batteries include batteries whose case is not cracked or leaking. OReilly team members reserve the right to refuse a damaged battery for recycling as they see fit. If your battery has been physically damaged and is leaking acid, it should be recycled at your local hazardous waste recycling facility. We also cannot recycle lithium batteries for marine, powersport, or automotive applications.

Follow State Regulations For Recycling Car Batteries

Even though most of these batteries do not contain much hazardous materials, you should consider looking through your state regulations for battery recycling.

You can look through websites or contact ecosystem protection agencies as well as the EPA , which is a federal agency aimed at keeping the planet safe.

Be sure to follow the regulations set forth in your state when recycling old batteries.

Additionally, be careful when managing used batteries since these items do hold lead and items.

Youll want to make sure to avoid touching any acids. Always handle batteries with safety gloves and wear goggles.

Make sure to never store your batteries in a high-temperature environment.

Avoid leaving your batteries around open flames.

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How To Dispose Of Car Batteries

You may sell old batteries in good condition but what to do with damaged batteries? Damaged batteries will not sell, and you are better off disposing of them. The question now is how do you recycle automotive batteries?.

First, be sure that it is time to replace the battery. Replace the battery if it is leaking, or bulging and fattening, is depleted, and does not charge, or when cell covers have gone missing.

It is common knowledge that used vehicle batteries are not counted as normal domestic waste and garbage and should certainly not be dumped along with domestic garbage. These batteries from cars should be sent to recycling centers dedicated to these items.

It is not considered safe for the environment otherwise. Also, you may get fines and penalties by just dumping your battery in the trash. This is because the battery contains lead and sulphuric acid both of which are harmful to the environment in multiple ways.

When you are removing the old battery from the vehicle, then you must use gloves and glasses as harmful acid may be leaking out.

Ensure whether the battery is damaged or not. If it is not damaged, then wrap the battery in plastic. Or if it is leaking then uses trash bags and double wrap it.

Hold the plastic in an upright position so that you do not have to wrap it too tight. Ensure that the battery stays upright the whole time.

You may be asked for a small fee to recycle. A battery which is leaking ought to be wrapped in heavy plastic.

What Are The Environmental Impacts

Recycle Your Car Battery

The question of the environmental impacts of battery manufacturing is perhaps even more important. Even if there are enough materials, the impacts of their use must be seriously considered.

Studies show that battery manufacturing can have serious impacts in terms of human toxicity or ecosystem pollution. On top of this is the need to monitor labour conditions in certain countries. Furthermore, analysing environmental impacts requires full knowledge of battery composition and manufacturing processes, but this information is difficult to obtain for obvious reasons related to industrial property.

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Local Auto Repair Shops

  • How much can you get: Varies

You could consider getting in touch with local auto repair shops to sell your used, working batteries. These stores sometimes purchase batteries and recondition them. They then put up these refurbished car batteries for sale at a discount to customers looking for used batteries.

Now, its important to note that in order to sell a battery to a repair shop, it will need to be defect-free. So it needs to work properly!

Recycle Your Old Battery

As a part of our dedication to reducing the environmental impact of improperly discarded car batteries, Firestone Complete Auto Care will recycle your dead battery for free. Simply bring your old battery to your nearest location or let our expert technicians replace and recycle your old battery while you relax in our waiting room.

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Local Auto Repair Shop

Auto repair shops will gladly take your old car battery because there are a couple of things they can use it for. If your battery is in a manageable condition when you drop it, they can resell it at a lower price than new batteries to customers who cannot afford or want a new battery. Some auto repair shops can refurbish the battery if it needs some brushing up to make it presentable for sale.

Some accept damaged batteries and gather them for recycling, but if they do not accept your battery due to damage, do not worry, there are other alternatives.

Could Recycling The Materials Provide Solutions To Limit These Risks And Impacts

All About Battery Recycling

There are two main families of battery recycling processes, used separately or in combination.

  • Pyrometallurgy, which destroys the organic and plastic components by exposing them to high temperatures and leaves only the metal components . These are then separated by chemical processes.

  • Hydrometallurgy, which does not include the high-temperature stage. Instead, it separates the components only by different baths of solutions that are chemically adapted to the materials to be recovered.

In both cases, the batteries must first be ground to a powder. The two processes currently operate on an industrial scale in recycling LIBs for telephones and laptops to recover the cobalt they contain. This material is so precious that recovering it ensures the economic profitability of the current LIB recycling sector.

But as the LIB technologies used for EVs do not all contain cobalt, the question of the economic model for recycling them remains unresolved, and there is still no real industrial sector for recycling these batteries. The main reason is the lack of a sufficient volume of batteries to be processed: the widespread roll-out of EVs is relatively recent and their batteries are not yet at the end of their life.

Furthermore, the definition of this end of life is in itself subject to discussion. For example, traction batteries are considered unfit for service when they have lost 20 or 30% of their capacity which corresponds to an equivalent loss in the vehicles autonomy.

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Disposing Of Alkaline Batteries

Most places dont accept single-use alkaline batteries for recycling. You cant take single-use batteries to Call2Recycle drop-off sites at The Home Depot.

In most places, you can put alkaline batteries, such as AA, AAA and D batteries, in the trash. They can be carried out to the curb with the rest of your household garbage. Many landfills will also accept trash bags that contain alkaline batteries. However, in the state of California, it is illegal to throw away any kind of battery, including alkaline batteries.

Even when single-use batteries can no longer run devices, they can still produce current. They can be hazardous if discarded improperly. Collect used household batteries in a container. A cardboard box or plastic tub is a safe option. Prevent any fire risk by taping 9-volt battery terminals before getting rid of them. You can use a piece of masking, electrical or duct tape.

How Do Lead Acid Batteries Get Recycled

Battery Council International put together a good video overview of this process:

Heres how lead acid batteries get recycled:

  • Lead acid battery recyclers collect dead lead acid batteries from consumers. These recyclers include auto parts stores, home improvement stores, big-box retailers, and local recycling centers.
  • The recyclers ship them to a recycling facility. This is an EPA-regulated facility for recycling batteries.
  • The recycling facility inspects the shipments to make sure theyre only recycling lead batteries. Its important that they remove any lithium-ion batteries from the shipment because lithium batteries are flammable.
  • The batteries are broken apart in a machine and the acid is drained. The lead and plastic parts of the battery then go into a container filled with water. The plastic pieces float and the lead pieces sink, making them easy to separate.
  • The reclaimed lead gets smelted and refined for use in new batteries. Nearly all the lead gets recycled from this process.
  • The reclaimed plastic pieces are cleaned and melted into pellets for use in new battery cases. Most of the plastic gets recycled, too.
  • Most of the reclaimed acid is converted to sodium sulfate. Sodium sulfate is an odorless powder used to make other products such as powdered laundry detergent and glass.
  • New lead acid batteries are made from the recycled materials. According to the EPA, a typical lead acid battery contains 60-80% recycled lead and plastic.
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    How To Dispose Of Car Batteries Safely

    Batteries Plus Blog – Power – by Bryan Veldboom- updated on 6/16/2022

    Today, we’re going to be talking about something most of us rarely think about how to dispose of an old car battery. Automotive batteries have an average lifespan of about three to five years, after which they’re pretty much useless. So, what do you actually do with a dead car battery? Once your car battery can no longer be used, you need to have it recycled. Keep reading for valuable information on why recycling is so important and where you can go to have them recycled.

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    Many people have no use for them once they start breaking down.

    Few know how to dispose of standard batteries used in flashlights or remote controls and even fewer have learned how to dispose of old car batteries.

    At your nearby auto shop, you can recycle old car batteries for a fee.

    Luckily, these batteries are recycled in high levels.

    Scientific American reported that lead-acid car batteries are the most commonly recycled product in the United States.

    In fact, more than 99 percent of car batteries are recycled across the country.

    While this is great news especially if you want to protect the planet and be green, you could be missing out on some cash if you leave your old car batteries with your local auto shop.

    You can get paid for used and old car batteries as well as other standard double-A or triple-A batteries.

    Also, the potential to make some extra cash for car batteries should make you giddy with excitement!

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    Different Kinds Of Batteries

    Single-use batteries are usually alkaline batteries with zinc, manganese or lithium chemistry. Rechargeable batteries are commonly nickel cadmium, nickel metal hydride or lithium-ion. Rechargeable batteries are found in the same shapes and voltage as single-use batteries, as well as specifically designed for laptops, mobile phones and electronic equipment.

    Buying rechargeable batteries is a great way to reduce battery waste. Each battery can be recharged up to 1000 times, saving you money and reducing pollution from discarded batteries. There are many retailers who sell battery rechargers, which conveniently take less than 15 minutes to recharge.

    Safety Tips For Disposing Of Car Batteries

    Stay safe by using the Halfords guide to handling car batteries:

    • Battery acid can burn clothing and skin and even cause blindness if it leaks, so wearprotectiveclothing when inspecting a battery prior to disconnection/transportation.
    • Disconnect the battery before inspecting it.
    • Always disconnect the negative cable first and reconnect it last.
    • Before moving a car battery, carry out a thorough inspection of its condition, using a torchtocheck all sides of the battery for marks, dents or leaks.
    • If the battery has any severe dents or leaks, then contact a professional mechanic orbreakdownservice for assistance and get it repaired or replaced. Dont attempt to move it.
    • During transport, cover the terminals so they cant be shorted out.
    • Keep the battery upright at all times.
    • Batteries can be fairly heavy, so be careful when lifting and carrying the battery. Seekassistance if required.

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