Ecological and biomedical effects of effluents from near-term electric vehicle storage battery cycles

Technical Report · Thu May 01 04:00:00 EDT 1980

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/5341909· OSTI ID:5341909

An assessment of the ecological and biomedical effects due to commercialization of storage batteries for electric and hybrid vehicles is given. It deals only with the near-term batteries, namely Pb/acid, Ni/Zn, and Ni/Fe, but the complete battery cycle is considered, i.e., mining and milling of raw materials, manufacture of the batteries, cases and covers; use of the batteries in electric vehicles, including the charge-discharge cycles; recycling of spent batteries; and disposal of nonrecyclable components. The gaseous, liquid, and solid emissions from various phases of the battery cycle are identified. The effluent dispersal in the environment is modeled and ecological effects are assessed in terms of biogeochemical cycles. The metabolic and toxic responses by humans and laboratory animals to constituents of the effluents are discussed. Pertinent environmental and health regulations related to the battery industry are summarized and regulatory implications for large-scale storage battery commercialization are discussed. Each of the seven sections were abstracted and indexed individually for EDB/ERA. Additional information is presented in the seven appendixes entitled; growth rate scenario for lead/acid battery development; changes in battery composition during discharge; dispersion of stack and fugitive emissions from battery-related operations; methodology for estimating population exposure to total suspended particulates and SO/sub 2/ resulting from central power station emissions for the daily battery charging demand of 10,000 electric vehicles; determination of As air emissions from Zn smelting; health effects: research related to EV battery technologies. (JGB)

• Research Organization: Argonne National Lab., IL (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: W-31109-ENG-38
• OSTI ID: 5341909
• Report Number(s): ANL/ES-90
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

25 ENERGY STORAGE
250901 -- Energy Storage-- Batteries-- Design & Development
250902 -- Energy Storage-- Batteries-- Performance & Testing
500200* -- Environment
Atmospheric-- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport-- (-1989)
510200 -- Environment
Terrestrial-- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport-- (-1989)
520200 -- Environment
Aquatic-- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport-- (-1989)
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ABSTRACTS
AIR POLLUTION
ARSENIC
BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
CARBONACEOUS MATERIALS
CHALCOGENIDES
COAL
DOCUMENT TYPES
ELECTRIC BATTERIES
ELECTRIC-POWERED VEHICLES
ELECTROCHEMICAL CELLS
ELEMENTS
ENERGY SOURCES
ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEMS
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
FORECASTING
FOSSIL FUELS
FOSSIL-FUEL POWER PLANTS
FUELS
HYBRID ELECTRIC-POWERED VEHICLES
IRON-NICKEL BATTERIES
LEAD-ACID BATTERIES
LEADING ABSTRACT
METAL-METAL OXIDE BATTERIES
NICKEL-ZINC BATTERIES
ORES
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POLLUTION
POWER PLANTS
SEMIMETALS
SMELTING
SULFUR COMPOUNDS
SULFUR DIOXIDE
SULFUR OXIDES
THERMAL POWER PLANTS
VEHICLES
ZINC ORES