1. LIFE-CYCLE OF AN ALKALINE BATTERY
Sustainable System FA16, CW2 Option 2, Laura ZELMANOWICZ

2. WHAT IS AN ALKALINE BATTERY ?
An alkaline battery is a type of primary battery dependent upon the reaction between zinc and manganese(IV) oxide (Zn/MnO2).
Used in many household items such as MP3 players, CD players, digital cameras, pagers, toys, lights, and radios, to name a few.
Discovered in 1899, introduced in the late 1960’s
Accounts for 80% of manufactured batteries in the US
Over 10 billion individual units are produced worldwide per year
Different brands of alkaline batteries

3. LIFE-CYCLE (1)
MANUFACTURING / PRODUCTION

4. MANUFACTURING / PRODUCTION
Video on how alkaline batteries are made
Diagram of the final battery

5. LIFE-CYCLE (2)
SHIPPING / DISTRIBUTION
MANUFACTURING / PRODUCTION

6. SHIPPING / DISTRIBUTION
Batteries can be a source of dangerous heat, sparks or fire if they are improperly packaged for shipping.
Alkaline batteries may be fully regulated as hazardous materials (also known as dangerous goods) for transportation.
Guidelines to transport batteries safely :
Package them keep them from being crushed or damaged
Always keep metal objects or other materials that can short circuit battery terminals away from the batteries (e.g., using a separate inner box for the batteries).
To prevent fire, any device with installed batteries must not turn on while in transport.
Protect switches that can be accidentally activated.

7. LIFE-CYCLE (3) SHIPPING / DISTRIBUTION MANUFACTURING / PRODUCTION
UTILIZATION /
CONSUMPTION

8. UTILIZATION / CONSUMPTION
Alkaline batteries are easily found in supermarkets or drugstores.
They are not considered expensive: around 18 batteries for 12$, so 1 battery costs around 1-1.5$.
Common AA batteries have an expected shelf life of seven years if they are not in use.
Research has shown that Duracell AA batteries can power a device for approximately 100 hours when they are in normal use in items such as flashlights and small toys.
Devices, called alkaline batteries regenerators, allow to reuse the alkaline batteries, instead of throwing them away after a single cycle of discharge.
Cells within the batteries have a limited cycle life affected by deep discharge : the first cycle gives the greatest capacity, and if deeply discharged a cell may only provide 20 cycles.
The available energy on each cycle decreases.
A battery regenerator

9. LIFE-CYCLE (4) SHIPPING / DISTRIBUTION MANUFACTURING / PRODUCTION
UTILIZATION /
CONSUMPTION
DISPOSAL /
RECYCLING

10. DISPOSAL / RECYCLING
Battery bins / collects of batteries to be recycled
There are many campaigns all around the world to collect used batteries.

11. DISPOSAL / RECYCLING
Recycling is very important as waste has a huge negative impact on the natural environment.
Harmful chemicals and greenhouse gasses are released from batteries in landfill sites. Recycling helps to reduce the pollution caused by waste batteries.
Recycling is essential to cities around the world and to the people living in them.
No space for battery waste : our landfill sites are filling up.
Reduce financial expenditure in the economy. Making batteries from raw materials costs much more than if they were made from recycled batteries, especially for zinc and manganese.
Preserve natural resources for future generations. Recycling reduces the need for raw materials; it also uses less energy, therefore preserves natural limited resources for the future.

12. LIFE-CYCLE (5) SHIPPING / DISTRIBUTION MANUFACTURING / PRODUCTION
UTILIZATION /
CONSUMPTION
MATERIAL EXTRACTION
DISPOSAL /
RECYCLING

13. RECYCLING / MATERIAL EXTRACTION

14. FULL LIFE-CYCLE OF AN ALKALINE BATTERY
SHIPPING / DISTRIBUTION
MANUFACTURING / PRODUCTION
UTILIZATION /
CONSUMPTION
MATERIAL EXTRACTION
DISPOSAL /
RECYCLING

15. ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES
Zinc and manganese, the major chemicals in alkaline batteries, do not pose environmental difficulties, and both are considered safe by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The major potential pollutant in batteries is mercury, which commonly accompanies zinc and which was for many years added to alkaline batteries to aid conductivity and to prevent corrosion.
In the mid-1980s, alkaline batteries commonly contained between 5 and 7% mercury.
There have been improvements : today's alkaline batteries may contain approximately % mercury.
Alkaline batteries waste :
Pollute the lakes and streams as the metals vaporize into the air when burned.
Contribute to heavy metals that potentially may leach from solid waste landfills.
Expose the environment and water to lead and acid.
Contain strong corrosive acids.

16. A leaked alkaline battery
LEAKS
Alkaline batteries are prone to leaking potassium hydroxide, a caustic agent that can cause respiratory, eye and skin irritation.
Some causes:
Dead batteries : all batteries gradually self-discharge whether installed in a device or not
Extremely high temperatures
Leaks can be reduced by:
Not attempting to recharge disposable alkaline cells
Not mixing different battery types in the same device
Replacing all of the batteries at the same time
Storing in a dry place and removing batteries for storage of devices
A leaked alkaline battery

17. IMPROVEMENTS Prevention of household battery waste
To reduce waste, start with prevention, which will create less or no leftover waste to become potentially hazardous waste.
Steps to take to prevent household battery waste :
Check to see if you already have the batteries on hand before buying more.
When suited to the task buy hand operated items that function without batteries.
Look for the batteries that have less mercury and heavy metals.
Consider rechargeable batteries for some needs, but remember that they also contain heavy metals such as zinc, manganese and mercury.

18. INNOVATION / ONGOING RESEARCH
By drawing on nanotechnology, Professor Joel E. Schindall and his colleagues are developing a fast-charging, long-lived ultracapacitor that will be able to provide quick energy and should hold about as much energy as a battery of equivalent dimensions.
Excerpt from MIT article “Saying goodbye to batteries”:
“Conventional batteries store energy by using chemical reactions to trap ions that move from one electrode to the other. Batteries have a huge storage capacity, but—because of the chemistry involved— electricity can go in and out only so fast, and some is lost as heat.
In contrast, capacitors store energy in an electric field. The absence of chemical reactions has advantages. Capacitors can deliver energy quickly, and they can be charged up in minutes or even seconds. They can withstand temperature changes, shocks, and vibrations. And they can be recharged hundreds of thousands of times before they wear out. They’re thus much easier on the environment than today’s batteries, which must be tossed out after a few hundred charges.
But their capacity for storing energy is limited. The best version is the ultracapacitor. It contains an electrolyte, a fluid containing positive and negative ions; and its electrodes are coated with activated carbon, which is extremely porous and so provides a large surface area for storing the ions. Nevertheless, today’s commercial ultracapacitors store around 25 times less energy than a similarly sized lithium-ion battery can. As a result, they need to be much larger than batteries to hold the same charge.”

19. INNOVATION / ONGOING RESEARCH
Underneath is a link to a complete article on 35 game-changers concerning the battery industry, such as sand or urine powered batteries.
“Future batteries, coming soon: charge in seconds, last months and power over the air”
published May 24th 2016 by Luke EDWARDS :
charge-in-seconds-last-months-and-power-over-the-air

20. SOURCES (1) What are alkaline batteries?
Batteries pictures from Dr KFS :
Life cycle
Battery image from Mission Critical Power battery-storage/
Manufacturing/ Production
“How it is made, alkaline batteries”, S5 Ep6 :
Britannica Kids, “Alkaline battery diagram”,
Transportation
UPS :
Utilization / Consumption
EMARCO online store : Powerback alkaline charger
Disposal / Recycling
“The Battery Recycling Process” diagram is from Summit Power Inc. :
Leaks
Wikipedia “Alkaline battery” :

21. SOURCES (2) Improvements
Environment health and safety online EHSO :
Innovation / Ongoing research
The MIT Energy Research Council, date unknown, “Saying goodbye to batteries” by Nancy Stauffer: