Application of a practical method to recuperate the chemical components of used batteries
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15626/Eco-Tech.2007.097Keywords:
Practical method; Chemical components, Used batteries.Abstract
In Mexico, an estimated 450 million batteries are used each year. In the last 43 years,
approximately 635 thousand tons of batteries have been released into the environment. Up to
date there are no regulations for their proper management, creating potential risks for both
human and environmental health. With the purpose of contributing to the alleviation of this
problem, the objective of this work was to identify a practical method to recuperate the
chemical components of discarded batteries and to conduct laboratory experiments for the
recuperation of metals,
Six methods for the treatment of batteries were compared: 1) electrochemical recuperation of
nickel and cadmium, 2) dissolution of batteries in an acidic solution (OBAS), 3) differential
pulse polarography, 4) pirolysis, 5) application of chemical stabilization agents, and 6)
reduction of battery components to pulp.
The method applied in this study, was the OBAS. The batteries were classified, cleaned, and
weighed. Their outer cover was removed, the batteries were dissected to extract internal
components, and the dissolution of the battery components was carried out in 30mL of
concentrated nitric acid (HNOe3) for each cylindrical battery and for each five button batteries.
The extraction with magnetic agitation was carried out over four hours under an exhaust
hood, and the toxic gases that were released were bubbled through water. The resulting
solution was measured for metals according to EPA method 601 OB, using a Jarrell Duo
Inductively Coupled Plasma Emission Spectrophotometer.
The metals extracted using this technique were, from the button batteries, Cu, Fe, Pb, and Zn,
from cylindrical Rocket batteries, Cu, Pb, Zn, Cr, Ni, Ag and from Duracell batteries, Cu, Fe,
Pb, and Zn. The concentrations and weights varied with the brand and type of batteries. It is
recommended that studies need to be done regarding the purification of these metals with the
purpose of commercialization.
Metrics
References
PROFECO ( 1998). "Conozca cual pila comprar" Revista del Consumi dor, No. 262. ( In Spanish).
EPA (2005). Environmental Protection Agency. Municipal Solid Waste.
Jacot!, M (2005) "Pilas y baterias: tcxicas en casa" www.greenpcace.org.mx. ( In Spanish).
Urquiza-Moreno y Ma. Neftali Rojas-Valencia "Riesgos potenciales tan to a la salud como al ambiente por desechos de pilas electricas". Memorias en CD del 2do. Congreso Internacional Ambiental del Caribe. Mayo, I 9, 20 y 21 de 2004: 1 -8. Centro de Convenciones. Cartagena de Indias- Colombia. (In Spanish).
Castro y Diaz. La Contaminacicn por pilas y baterias en Mexico. Gaceta Ecol cgica, !NE- SEMARNAT Mexico. num. 72. Mexico 2004. ( In Spanish).
Mac Kay, Nancy (2000). "Estrategias Ambientales: Las decisiones ambientales y los 2 ° protagonistas" Parle: Derecho a la infonnaci6n ambiental - Capitulo 5: Cr6nicas de nuevos caminos. nancymac@arnet.com.ar ( In Spanish).
!NEG!, XIV Censo Industrial. Industrias Manufactureras. Productos y Materias primas, Censos Economicos, 1995.
PROFECO ( 1995) "Conozca qui en es qui en en pi las electricas" Revista de! Consumidor. Reporte especial No. 226, diciembre. ( In Spanish).
Ley General del Equilibri a Ecol6gico y la Protecci6n al Ambiente 1988. Diario Oficial de la Federaci6n, 28 de enero. ( In Spanish).
Nonna Oficial Mexicana, NOM-052-ECOL- l 993, Que establece las Caracteristicas de los residuos pel igrosos, el listado de los mismos y los limites que hacen a un residua peligroso por su tox ici dad al ambiente. Diario Oficial de la Federaci6n, 22 de octubre de 1993. ( In Spanish).
Red Mexicana de Manejo Ambiental de Residuos ( REM EX MAR), "Revision y anal isis de las experiencias nacionales respecto de los cinco elementos claves para el manejo ambiental de pilas, baterias, lubricantes y envases de plaguicidas'·. http://www.remexmar. org.mx. ( In Spanish).
OECD Steering Group ON nickel/Cadmium Batteries, "Draft Guidance Document for Developing Successful Systems for the Collection and Recycling of Nickel/Cadmium Batteries", 1998, Mexico,
Jimenez, J, S, (2000) "Recuperacicin electroquimica de cadmio de mezclas de niquel y cadmio" fue la tesis de maestria de Tesis para obtener el grado de Maestro, Universidad lberoamericana, Campus Santa Fe. (In Spanish),
Santiago Osorio, Edgar, 2001, "Diseiio de un reactor Batch y el proceso para tratar pilas y recuperar sus componentes", Tesis Liee. (Ing, Quimico)-UNAM, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Zaragoza, 115 p, (In Spanish).
Mayen-Mondragon, R,; Baeza, A, ; Ibanez, J, G, (2002) "Simultaneous Determination of Nickel and Cadmium by Differential Pulse Polarography" Analytical Sciences February (Japan) Vol 18:191-193
SEMARNAT, !NE, Direccicin General de Regulacicin Ambiental, Direccicin de Economia AmbientaL Propuesta de sistema de depcisito, Reembolso para la Gesticin Ambiental de Pilas Electricas de Consumo familiar, 1997. (In Spanish).
Man-el lo, P, M, ( 1998)"Agentes quimicos estabilizadores" 2 paginas http:/ /www, I ions,org, br/circle/articulos/pilapilas.htm ( In Spanish),
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2007 Ma. Neftali Rojas-Valencia , Ma. Guadalupe Urquiza-Moreno , Cristian Rios-Martinez
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
