Battery Recycling Key Terms

Understand battery recycling key terms

Battery recycling is a relatively successful and widespread practice. From dry-cell alkaline to lead-acid car batteries, there are recycling programs around the country that can dispose of batteries properly and turn their used components into production-ready raw materials. Like many other electronics industries, battery recycling has a vocabulary all its own. Learning a few battery recycling key terms will help you know how to safely get rid of your battery waste.

 

Lead acid

A large portion of recycled batteries, including car and marine types, run on lead acid. The material is hazardous, but fortunately for the environment, you can recycle nearly 90-percent of all lead acid batteries.
Try: Batterystuff.com has published a good primer on lead acid batteries. To learn more about lead acid battery recycling, visit the website of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

High-temperature metal reclamation

Also known as HTMR, battery recycling companies use high-temperature metal reclamation to recycle lithium, nickel metal hydride and nickel-cadmium batteries. Recycling centers heat all of the metals in the batteries until they melt, except for lithium, cadmium and zinc, which the centers filter out and recycle.
Try: Battery Solutions has more information on HTMR, as well as other battery recycling processes.

E-scrap

E-scrap is a catch-all term for cell phones, laptops and other recyclable electronics. Many battery recycling companies also recycle e-scrap, which makes the process much easier on consumers who can pack all of their electronics, including batteries, into one box for recycling.
Try: The City of Louisville, Kentucky runs an e-scrap recycling program that allows residents, businesses and 501(c) nonprofit organizations to dispose of their computers, monitors and other electronics.

Ingots

Many batteries contain lead in the form of grids, oxides and other parts. During the recycling process, the recycling centers melt these parts into molds to make blocks called ingots.
Try: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) maintains a detailed glossary of lead battery terms that includes information on ingots and the recycling process.

Hogs and pigs

In battery recycling lingo, hogs and pigs describe ingots of different sizes. Hogs are large ingots weighing more than a ton, while pigs are smaller ingots.
Try: Check out  Battery Council International for more information hogs, pigs and the lead recycling process.

Rechargeable battery

Aside from the obvious rechargeable alkaline batteries, rechargeable batteries include those found in cell phones, laptops, digital cameras and other personal electronics. Federal and state governments have established a set of specific laws regarding the disposal of these batteries that consumers must follow when recycling them.
Try: The Rechargeable Battery Recycling Commission is the best place to find information on disposing of rechargeable batteries. It has shipping and safety tips, as well as links to federal and state recycling regulations.

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