Lithium Battery Recycling

• Lithium battery disposal for businesses
• How to dispose of lithium batteries
• Can you recycle lithium batteries?

Safe lithium battery disposal is vital as old and damaged ones pose a risk of fires and explosions. This is due to thermal runway, which generates intense heat and gas within the battery. Exposure to high heat, compression, punctures, damage, and other factors can cause a chemical reaction that results in thermal runway.

Lithium batteries are a type of hazardous waste as they contain harmful and dangerous substances. Exposure to lithium can cause health problems including nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and shortness of breath. Handling old lithium batteries carefully and separating them from other waste by storing them in hazardous waste bins before disposal is vital.

Lithium batteries are recyclable. However, the process is more complex than recycling other batteries because they contain lithium, which is a highly reactive element. Not all elements of a lithium-ion battery are recyclable, but most materials are recoverable. There are specialist recycling centres and facilities that recycle lithium batteries.

It’s also not possible to recycle lithium batteries indefinitely. The metals they contain can be recycled many times, but it can affect the purity. By the end of 2040 it’s expected there could be 350,000 tonnes of end-of-life electric vehicle batteries in the UK. Therefore efforts to recycle lithium batteries are predicted to grow.

At Business Waste we help find solutions so you can recycle lithium batteries of any type, size, and condition. We never send any lithium batteries to landfill or for incineration – not only is this illegal but it’s terrible for the environment. Li-ion battery recycling is the best disposal method.

Old lithium batteries are discharged before they undergo mechanical and chemical separation processes. The lithium batteries are dismantled (sometimes by hand) to remove valuable assets for reuse. Often a heat-based smelting process (pyrometallurgy) or a liquid-based leaching process (hydrometallurgy) are used. Research and developments are ongoing into recycling lithium batteries to improve the processes.

The process of recycling lithium-ion batteries involves extracting reusable materials that are used to create new lithium batteries. This includes copper and aluminium, which are used in the anode and cathode of the batteries. Other valuable raw materials extracted include cobalt, lithium, manganese, and nickel salts mixed with graphite.

Get free bins for your waste lithium-ion batteries with Business Waste. There are no delivery charges or rental fees – you only cover the collection costs. We can collect any type, size, and number of old lithium batteries from anywhere in the UK thanks to our nationwide network.

Licensed waste carriers will remove your lithium batteries and transport them to a specialist recycling facility for responsible and legal disposal. This aligns with our zero waste to landfill policy and ensures disposal methods align with relevant UK regulations. You’ll receive a free duty of care certificate for added peace of mind.