11A.1 AUTOMOTIVE AND HOUSEHOLD BATTERIES

Introduction

Americans use considerable quantities of batteries to power a variety of household and industrial products. Batteries are used in motor and marine vehicles, electronics, watches, cameras, calculators, hearing aids, cordless telephones, power tools, and countless other portable household devices. Recently, much attention has been focused on the potential environmental and human health risks associated with the heavy metals present in batteries. Such concern has caused many municipalities to consider programs for recovering the large number of batteries discarded in municipal solid waste (MSW). Historically, residential collection and recycling efforts have been limited to used automobile batteries. In recent years, states and municipalities have begun to focus on the recovery of used household batteries. Such activities have coincided with a number of legislative and industry initiatives to reduce the toxicity of batteries and to promote their safe collection, reclamation, and disposal.

Battery Definitions and Terms

Batteries are complex electrochemical devices, composed of distinct cells, that generate electrical energy from the chemical energy of their cell components. Despite the technical distinction between them, the terms battery and cell are often used interchangeably. A battery cell consists primarily of a metallic anode (negative electrode), a metallic oxide cathode (positive electrode), and an electrolyte material that facilitates the chemical reaction between the two electrodes. Electric currents are generated as the anode corrodes in the electrolyte and initiates an ionic exchange reaction with the cathode. The electrical energy...