Toyota/Kinsbursky battery link-up

Japan – Car manufacturer Toyota is working on a new system for recycling hybrid batteries that will address every component part once the end-of-life stage has been reached. The initiative is based on a programme launched a year ago by Toyota Motor Sales USA and its dealers.

Dying battery packs are sent to recycling specialist Kinsbursky Bros. of Anaheim in California, Toyota’s Corporate Manager of Product Quality and Service Support, Gary Smith, is quoted as telling plasticnews. Kinsbursky breaks these down and removes the most valuable components – nickel and a few rare-earth elements. The battery modules are shorted out to remove the electric current, the electrolyte is decanted and the nickel is sent to a smelter outside of California. Meanwhile, the plastic housing is shredded ready for reuse. Kinsbursky can also recycle lithium-ion batteries, which are replacing nickel-metal hydride batteries in many electric vehicles and hybrids.