The federal agency is chiefly concerned with the batteries’ propensity for starting fires. | Allyson Kitts/Shutterstock
The U.S. EPA recently clarified that lithium-ion batteries should be treated as hazardous waste, but did not yet change current recycling rules and regulations. Continue Reading
David C. Bursell of MoviTHERM believes infrared technology is a game changer for protecting the lives of workers and avoiding property damage at recycling facilities. | Piotr Zajda/Shutterstock
Waste and recycling facilities are crucial in handling the world’s growing waste streams, but they pose a significant risk of fires. Continue Reading
Lithium primary batteries have a reputation for starting fires. | Courtesy of Sims Lifecycle Services
Lithium button cell batteries sparked a small fire at BlueSky Solutions, but an official at the North Carolina e-scrap recycler said workflow changes have been made to prevent future incidents. Continue Reading
The bills cover a wide range of items, from single-use plastics at lodging establishments to blades for wind turbines. | Ververidis Vasilis/Shutterstock
Washington state legislators sent to the governor’s desk a bill that sets up an extended producer responsibility program for batteries. Continue Reading
Princeton NuEnergy’s pilot line can process 500 tons of material per year, sourcing batteries from Apple, Dell, Samsung and Call2Recycle. | Courtesy of Princeton NuEnergy
Princeton NuEnergy secured a $12 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to accelerate the commercialization of its technology. Continue Reading
Lithium is selling for about $30,000 per metric ton, less than half of what it sold for in mid-2022. | Andrii Yalanskyi/Shutterstock
As demand for electric vehicles declines, prices for lithium, cobalt and copper are sliding down, potentially putting lithium-ion battery recyclers in a tight spot. Continue Reading
Big moves are taking place in the arena of lithium-ion recycling. | Courtesy of Tevva Media
In recent weeks, Li-Cycle received federal funding for a facility, AquaMetals announced a technology breakthrough and Ecobat shared its plans to build a facility in Arizona.
URT has so far processed about 7.5 tons of batteries one Oregon hauler collected at the curb. | Parilov/Shutterstock
Over the past several years, a handful of Oregon counties decided to switch to curbside battery collection to avoid fires. Universal Recycling Technologies has been processing some of the collected tonnage.
The IntelSight color-codes items so that human pickers can more easily sort them by hand. | Courtesy of Neatco Engineering Services
Neatco Engineering Services is using a combination of human and machine learning to improve e-scrap sorting.
Redwood’s McCarran, Nev. campus will eventually produce about 100,000 metric tons of cathode active materials and 36,000 metric tons of ultra-thin battery-grade copper foil each year. | Allyson Kitts/Shutterstock
Redwood Materials has secured a major loan from the federal government, with some strings attached, to help build out its Nevada lithium-ion battery recycling campus.