1. Used lead batteries, description and production, overview of available standards, technical specification and guidelines on the storage and treatment of batteries and accumulators
Jaromír MANHART
Regional workshop of experts to review Guidelines for environmentally sound management of used lead batteries
Slovakia, Bratislava

2. Definitions in accu guidelines I
Battery - device that stores energy for later use
Galvanic cell - a device consisting of two electrodes (an anode and a cathode) and an electrolyte solution
Lead battery - the electrical accumulator made up of lead plates in the electrolyte solution of sulphuric acid
Used lead battery - the battery which is no longer capable to be recharged, its lifetime reaches its end and it becomes a waste.

3. Definitions in accu guidelines II
Management of used lead batteries - the overall process of collection, transport, recovery and or disposal of used lead batteries, including the supervision of such operations
Separate collection - the gathering of used lead batteries, including the preliminary sorting and preliminary storage of used lead batteries for the purposes of transport to a treatment facility
Storage - placing of used lead batteries in the room of waste management or treatment facilities in sites with impermeable surfaces and suitable weatherproof covering or in suitable containers

4. Definitions in accu guidelines III
Treatment of used lead batteries - means recovery or disposal operations with used lead batteries, including preparation prior to recovery or disposal
Recovery - means any operation the principal result of which used lead batteries serving a useful purpose by replacing other materials which would otherwise have been used to fulfil a particular function, or waste being prepared to fulfil that function, in the plant or in the wider economy

5. Definitions in accu guidelines IV
Recycling - means any recovery operation by which used lead batteries materials are reprocessed into products, materials or substances whether for the original or other purposes
Fractions of used lead batteries – material parts and pieces produced from treatment of used lead batteries and relevant by-processes of used lead batteries
Disposal - means any operation which is not recovery even where the operation has as a secondary consequence the reclamation of substances or energy

6. Description of accu in accu guidelines I

7. Description of accu in accu guidelines II

8. Environmental and health aspects in accu guidelines I
Batts pose a threat to our environment and to human beings
Toxic materials inside may cause danger to water, soil and air – Pb and H2SO4
ULAB are labelled as hazardous material
Pb causes a variety of health effects mainly to children
Too much Pb can damage various systems of the body including the nervous and reproductive systems and the kidneys, and it can cause high blood pressure and anaemia

9. Environmental and health aspects in accu guidelines II
Pb is a metal with no known biological benefit to humans
There is no known safe blood Pb concentration
World focus on Cd, Hg, Pb
H2SO4 is highly corrosive
Eye contact can cause permanent blindness; swallowing damages internal organs that can lead to death

10. Environmental and health aspects in accu guidelines III

11. Environmental and health aspects in accu guidelines IV
First aid treatment to be ready always needed
E.g. flushing the skin/eyes for 10 to 15 minutes with large amounts of water
Cool the affected tissues and to prevent secondary damage.
Immediately remove contaminated clothing and thoroughly wash the skin
Always wear protective equipment when handling the H2SO4

12. Sources of waste lead batts, estimation of amounts of produced used lead batts
Used in vehicles of all types all around the world
Amount of vehicles increasing = Amount of ACCU growing
(LCV/HCV light/heavy commercial vehicles)

13. Sources of waste lead accumulators

14. Composition of typical lead acid automotive battery scrap
Component
Wt / %
Lead (alloy) component (grid, poles…)
Electrolyte paste (fine particles of lead oxide and lead sulphate)
Sulphuric acid (10 – 20% H2SO4)
Polypropylene
4 - 8
Other plastics (PVC, PE, etc.)
2 - 7
Ebonite
1 - 3
Other materials (glass, etc.)
< 0.5

15. Overview of LEGAL FRAME, available standards, technical specification and guidelines on the storage and treatment of batteries and accumulators

16. European Union Legislative Framework
EU Batteries Directive 2006/66/EC
Best Available Techniques Reference Documents of the European Commission – BREF…
on BAT on Emissions from Storage
on BAT in the Non Ferrous Metals Industries
on BAT for the Waste Treatment Industries
BAT for Iron and Steel Production

17. Bref on Emissions from Storage
addresses the storage and the transfer/handling of liquids, liquefied gases and solids, regardless of the sector or industry
addresses emissions to air, soil and water in:
• Heaps, sacks and bulk bags
• Silos and bunkers
• Packaged dangerous solids
• Containers and the storage of containers
It describes techniques for the transfer and handling of solids:
mobile unloading devices, grabs, dump pits, fill pipes, thrower belts, conveyors and feeders

18. Bref in the Non Ferrous Metals Industries
Covers:
the techniques for the production of both primary and secondary non-ferrous metals
the production of 42 non-ferrous metals and the production of ferro alloys
10 groups of metals with similar production methods are dealt with in the document, namely:
• Zinc, Lead, Cadmium, Antimony and Bismuth etc.
• Precious metals, etc.

19. Bref for Iron and Steel Production
Covers:
the processes involved in the production of iron and steel in integrated works
the production of steel in electric arc furnace steelworks
The main operations covered are:
• Loading, unloading and handling of bulk raw materials
• Blending and mixing of raw materials
• Production and refining of steel using the basic oxygen process, including upstream ladle desulphurisation, downstream ladle metallurgy and slag processing, etc.

20. Bref for Waste Treatment Industries
Covers the installations of a number of waste (hazardous and non- hazardous) treatment processes, and deals with:
Common waste treatment processes such as temporary waste storage, blending and mixing, repackaging, sampling, checking and analysis, waste transfer and handling installations, and waste transfer stations
Biological waste treatment processes
Physico-chemical waste treatment processes
Treatment processes to recover waste material for secondary use such as the re-concentration of acids and bases, the recovery of metals from liquid and solid photographic waste, the regeneration of organic solvents and spent ion exchange resins, and the re-refining of waste oils

21. Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal
Secretariat
Working groups
Guidance and Guidelines
Technical Guidelines for the Environmentally Sound Management of Waste Lead-acid Batteries, 2003
Current draft Guidelines

22. Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants
BAT/BEP to minimize releases of POPs from unintentional production
Thermal process of ACCU in the metallurgical industry i.e. secondary lead smelting
Production of Pb and Pb-alloys, primarily from scrap automobile batteries, other used Pb-sources (pipe, solder, drosses, lead sheathing).
Production processes include:
scrap pretreatment
smelting
refining

23. Stockholm Convention BAT/BEP to minimize releases of POPs from unintentional production I
Incomplete combustion
High levels of oils
Plastics and other organic materials in feed
Temperatures 250°C - 500°C may all give rise to polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDD) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDF)
Performance levels associated with best available techniques for secondary lead smelters are <0.1 ng I-TEQ/Nm3

24. Stockholm Convention BAT/BEP to minimize releases of POPs from unintentional production II
BAT include the use of:
plastic-free material
oil-free feed material
high furnace temperatures above 850°C
effective gas collection
afterburners and rapid quench
activated carbon adsorption, and
dedusting fabric filters

25. General information on emissions from secondary lead smelters
Air emissions from secondary lead smelting can escape as stack or fugitive emissions, depending on the facility age or technology.
Main contaminants:
sulphur dioxide (SO2), other sulphur compounds and acid mists → H2SO4
nitrogen oxides (NOx) → low-NOx or oxy-fuel burners
metals (especially Pb) and their compounds
dusts, traces of PCDD/F → fabric filters → back to process

26. Emissions of PCDD/PCDF to air during the smelting process
most problematic PCDD/F formed during base metals smelting
reaction of products of incomplete combustion, unburnt organic contaminants and Cl2 compounds, usually by de novo synthesis in the cooling zone at temperatures between 250°C and 450°C
PCDD/F easily adsorb onto solid matter and may be collected by all environmental media as dust, scrubber solids and filter dust
Full description on PCDD/PCDF minimization is given in the chapter "Thermal processes in the metallurgical industry not mentioned in Annex C, part II" of the "Guidelines on BAT/BEP" of the Stockholm Convention

27. Thank you for your attention
Mr. Jaromír MANHART
SGS Czech Republic, s.r.o. K Hájům 1233/2, Praha 5, Tel: , Fax: