Battery Recycling
Batteries contain hazardous substances which are harmful to humans and the environment. To make a sustainable contribution to environmental protection used batteries must be handled professionally and/or recycled according to legislation.On December 1, 2009 the Germany’s new Battery Act replaced the previous battery ordinance, converting the European Waste Battery Directive into German law. The new battery regulation specifies threshold limit values for the application of dangerous components, such as mercury, lead or cadmium and, as compared to its precedent, for the first time defines legally binding return quotas for used portable batteries.
Recovery of valuable components
The established foundation Gemeinsames Rücknahmesystem Batterien (GRS) [Joint Batteries Return System] has already been organizing the return of batteries (producers’ take-back principle) since 1998. DELA GmbH, a successful contract partner of the GRS battery re-collection scheme, fulfils all legal requirements.The main object of used battery reprocessing consists in recovering and marketing the metals which the batteries contain, like zinc, manganese, iron and, if available, mercury. After recycling, they can be re-entered into the material cycle as secondary raw materials. Used domestic and industrial dry-cell batteries, (round cells and block batteries), i.e. zinc-carbon and alkali-manganese batteries, are mechanically disrupted and subject to sorting procedures at DELA GmbH’s business location in Bad Oeynhausen, Germany.
Mercury is extracted from coin cells containing mercury by means of revolving-kiln-distillation at the business location of DELA GmbH in Essen, Germany.