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Are hybrid and electric vehicle batteries a green alternative or add hazardous chemicals to our landfills? Are all battery components recyclable? While waste management and recycling practices progress, is it possible to rescue every car battery from the landfill?
Some environmentally conscience people are concerned that hybrid bliss might turn into a toxic chaos, when today's hybrid vehicles batteries are disposed. With the advances in hybrid and electric vehicles (EV), developments of alternative batteries have re-opened the environmental debate about car battery technology.
In early August 2009 President Obama set a goal of 1 million plug-in hybrids on U.S. roads by 2015. The U.S. Department Of Energy (DOE) announced a $2.4 billion in grants to accelerate the manufacturing and deployment of electric vehicles, batteries, and components in the U.S., which will create tens of thousands of new jobs.
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Grants are allocated to American automobile manufacturers for research, production, education and training of the work force, marketing and sales, as well as battery manufacturing.
The development of battery technologies comprises manufacturing capacity, electric drive components, and the deployment of electric cars, in an effort to establish American leadership in competitive global markets.
According to environmental researchers, there are many types of batteries, where some are very toxic and others are less: lead acid or nickel cadmium batteries have a harmful impact on the environment.
As the number of hybrid and electric cars increases on American roads, the controversy expanded into two types of competing battery technologies: lithium ion vs. Ni-Mh batteries.
Lithium Ion Batteries are a rechargeable battery with a relatively long shelf life, and carry a greater charge-capacity, however it’s costly to manufacturer. Safety is also a concern, as these batteries tend to overheat.
Nickel-Metal hybrid (Ni-Mh) Batteries are more stable than lithium ion batteries and cost less to make. However, they have a short life span, and produce overall less power capacity. They have been used for years as the most widespread rechargeable batteries at AA, and 9V outputs.
In 2005, the Environmental Defense Fund conducted a research examining the environmental impacts related to the extraction, manufacture, use, and disposal of nickel metal hydride batteries and lithium ion. In comparison to the conventional lead acid batteries, the research concluded that lead was the worst, nickel was next, and lithium was the least harmful.
While lead recycling is an established industry, it's impossible to rescue every car battery from the landfill. Nickel also poses environmental risks: a probable carcinogen, nickel mining methods, as well as recycling.
So what is going to happen next?
If no other battery technology with effective business applications emerges in the next few years, the future use of Lithium ion batteries is expected to grow as production costs come down. Future advancements in recycling management will improve disposal, and the overall environmental impact will be dependent upon which materials are combined with lithium and how toxic they are.
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Comments
Your article should say IF batteries end up in land fills, not WHEN. I currently fully recycle all of my batteries, including Lithium Ion and my city has several battery recycling depots. Batteries definitely don't have to end up in land fills at all, and the materials they contain can be used over and over again. Also, you are obviously completely unaware of the many other battery technologies out there (see Wikipedia).
Soon, there will be even less toxic, safer and immensely more powerful batteries available to automakers from EEStor and Zenn Motors. Toshiba's SuperCharge battery charges in just 5 minutes and there are batteries under development that are made of nothing but fully recyclable carbon. The electric car revolution will drive innovation just as the home computer has done for chips and displays.
The future looks bright.
Lithium batteries, when they've reached the end of their life in electric cars, will still be valuable.
Once a battery will only hold an 80% or so charge the range of the EV is significantly degraded and it will be time to replace the battery.
But that 80% is still very valuable in applications where battery weight is not a factor. Utility companies will want these batteries for dealing with grid surges and shifting surplus power from low to high demand times. Few are likely to throw away their car battery when someone will pay them good money for it.
We'll likely see huge banks of 'slightly used' battery packs housed in less expensive real estate and hooked to the grid. And getting essentially all of those batteries to recycling when their life is over is almost guaranteed.
1) There's not a single new electric vehicle model coming out from a major automaker that uses NiMH. Virtually all of them -- many dozens of models -- use lithium-ion.
2) You're confusing laptop-type lithium ions with automotive li-ions when you talk about hazards. Li-ion is an entire family of chemistries. What you're saying is like saying that nightshades are poisonous, so you shouldn't eat tomatoes. Automotive-style li-ions are not dangerous at all. These include the phosphates and manganates. The laptop-style li-ions use a cobalt cathode that causes most of the risk. The only automaker using laptop-style cells is Tesla, and this is largely because they started before the automotive varieties became readily avail. And even in that case, each cell is individually isolated in its own can to prevent failures from propagating.
The focus on the batteries is way overwrought. Your average car burns through more gasoline every year of it's life than the vehicle itself weighs.
1. Do you know how much more energy and material is needed to produce electric cars?
2. The A/C electricity must be produced also - mostly with coal or oil. Where is the BIG green advantage?
3. The batteries are extremely toxic! (as the new "green" bulbs are produced in China)
4. Is there any objective scientist trying to compare the advantages and disadvantages (cost and benefit)?
5. Why do we approach everything from the political green viewpoint?
6. Why did greenies and socialists/communist unite? What do they have in common?
It's completely absurd to think that electric cars help the environment - The electricity they need is generated by burning fossil fuels in power stations, producing CO2 and other harmful greenhouse gases.
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