Disposal of Spent Batteries and the Feasibility of Reclaiming Their Components

Abstract

Spent and new dry cell batteries were buried in loam and in sand, and in acidic and near neutral to slightly basic conditions. Water was poured periodically over the burial site and the leach was analyzed for heavy metal ion concentrations by means of atomic absorption spectroscopy. Test data and industry contact show that there is no serious pollution problem associated with the disposal of carbon-zinc dry cell batteries other than their bulk. The batteries should be disposed of along with other trash. in sanitary land fills. When large quantities of batteries are discarded, they should be buried at a site that is well drained, above the ground water table, and in calcareous earth or in areas amended with lime. Recycling of dry cell batteries was found to be economically unfeasible at this time.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 27, 1975
Accession Number
ADA013519

Entities

People

  • Andrew J. Szlachtun

Organizations

  • United States Army Soldier Systems Center

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Advanced Electronics
  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Absorption
  • Chemistry
  • Dry Batteries
  • Energy
  • Engineering
  • Environmental Protection
  • Groundwater
  • Heavy Metals
  • Materials
  • Materials Engineering
  • Mercury Batteries
  • Metals
  • Organic Materials
  • Spectroscopy
  • Tannic Acid
  • United States
  • Warehouses

Readers

  • Agricultural Chemistry/Soil Science
  • Battery Technology and Engineering
  • Environmental Engineering.