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The elements and chemicals in all batteries should be recycled, this is a no-brainer. And it ought to be comparatively easy to do. We should't even throw chea

The elements and chemicals in all batteries should be recycled, this is a no-brainer. And it ought to be comparatively easy to do. We should't even throw cheap alkaline or zinc carbon cells away as they contain the depolarizer manganese dioxide and manganese is expensive. The trouble is in many places there are insufficient collection points to collect discarded batteries. I recall when living in Europe streets used to have little waste containers especially for batteries and they were easy and convenient to use. These ought to be the norm everywhere.

BenjiWiebe 5y ago
Yes that would be nice. I have a swollen LiPo phone battery laying on a piece of steel right now (to prevent fire spread) and the nearest place I know of to recycle it is 20 miles away in a town I rarely go to otherwise.
- hilbert42 5y ago
  Nuisance isn't it. I've just had the same problem with a phone LiPo but I solved it by completely discharging the cell to the extent that in the end I could short the terminals without effect or drama. I've often done the same with old 18650s from laptops. BTW, ages ago, I had a box of about a dozen Li primary AA size pigtail type cells and one shorted. They were in a plastic bag inside a cardboard box and shortly before I'd placed that box in a plastic milk crate type container. Suddenly there was a bang so loud I thought the police would arrive - the neighbors having reported a gunshot. The plastic bag was turned into confetti that covered the room, the cardboard box shredded into little bits and a hole was blown straight through the side of the milk crate and what remained of the battery's nickel casing was embedded in a nearby wall. Had I been in a slightly different spot in the room I could have seriously injured or killed. This isn't exactly the same scenario but I'm very particular about the way I handle Li cells after that experience and that also applies to when I'm flattening them to make them safe.
Tozen 5y ago
There definitely has to be a shift in the thinking processes of most societies, and from the looks of how the world is being affected, this shift needs to happen sooner versus later. Planning shouldn't stop after manufacturing and the sale is made. Greater emphasis on factoring in how products will be disposed of, will have a greater impact. We owe it to the children, who must inherit the mess that's made.
- PaulHoule 5y ago
  Automobiles and airplanes already work on a ‘circular economy’ in that a car gets crushed and the major part of the materials reused. Phones, laptops, food packaging and buildings on the other hand are seen as disposable.

BenjiWiebe 5y ago

Yes that would be nice. I have a swollen LiPo phone battery laying on a piece of steel right now (to prevent fire spread) and the nearest place I know of to recycle it is 20 miles away in a town I rarely go to otherwise.

hilbert42 5y ago
Nuisance isn't it. I've just had the same problem with a phone LiPo but I solved it by completely discharging the cell to the extent that in the end I could short the terminals without effect or drama. I've often done the same with old 18650s from laptops. BTW, ages ago, I had a box of about a dozen Li primary AA size pigtail type cells and one shorted. They were in a plastic bag inside a cardboard box and shortly before I'd placed that box in a plastic milk crate type container. Suddenly there was a bang so loud I thought the police would arrive - the neighbors having reported a gunshot. The plastic bag was turned into confetti that covered the room, the cardboard box shredded into little bits and a hole was blown straight through the side of the milk crate and what remained of the battery's nickel casing was embedded in a nearby wall. Had I been in a slightly different spot in the room I could have seriously injured or killed. This isn't exactly the same scenario but I'm very particular about the way I handle Li cells after that experience and that also applies to when I'm flattening them to make them safe.

Tozen 5y ago

There definitely has to be a shift in the thinking processes of most societies, and from the looks of how the world is being affected, this shift needs to happen sooner versus later. Planning shouldn't stop after manufacturing and the sale is made. Greater emphasis on factoring in how products will be disposed of, will have a greater impact. We owe it to the children, who must inherit the mess that's made.

PaulHoule 5y ago
Automobiles and airplanes already work on a ‘circular economy’ in that a car gets crushed and the major part of the materials reused. Phones, laptops, food packaging and buildings on the other hand are seen as disposable.