The Environmental Burdens of Lead-Acid Batteries in China: Insights from an Integrated Material Flow Analysis and Life Cycle Assessment of Lead

Sha Chen, Zhenyue Lian, Sumei Li, Junbeum Kim, Yipei Li, Lei Cao and Zunwen Liu
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Sha Chen: Key Laboratory of Beijing on Regional Air Pollution Control, College of Environmental and Energy Engineering, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, China
Zhenyue Lian: Key Laboratory of Beijing on Regional Air Pollution Control, College of Environmental and Energy Engineering, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, China
Sumei Li: Key Laboratory of Beijing on Regional Air Pollution Control, College of Environmental and Energy Engineering, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, China
Junbeum Kim: CREIDD Research Centre on Environmental Studies and Sustainability, Department of Humanity, Environment and Information Technology, University of Technology of Troyes, F-10010 Troyes, France
Yipei Li: Environmental Certification Center of Ministry of Environment Protection, Beijing 100029, China
Lei Cao: Environmental Certification Center of Ministry of Environment Protection, Beijing 100029, China
Zunwen Liu: Environmental Certification Center of Ministry of Environment Protection, Beijing 100029, China

Energies, 2017, vol. 10, issue 12, 1-15

Abstract: Lead-acid batteries (LABs), a widely used energy storage equipment in cars and electric vehicles, are becoming serious problems due to their high environmental impact. In this study, an integrated method, combining material flow analysis with life cycle assessment, was developed to analyze the environmental emissions and burdens of lead in LABs. The environmental burdens from other materials in LABs were not included. The results indicated that the amount of primary lead used in LABs accounted for 77% of the total lead production in 2014 in China. The amount of discharged lead into the environment was 8.54 × 10 5 tonnes, which was mainly from raw material extraction (57.2%). The largest environmental burden was from the raw materials extraction and processing, which accounted for 81.7% of the total environmental burdens. The environmental burdens of the environmental toxicity potential, human toxicity potential-cancer, human toxicity potential-non-cancer, water footprint and land use accounted for more than 90% at this stage. Moreover, the environmental burdens from primary lead was much more serious than regenerated lead. On the basis of the results, main practical measures and policies were proposed to reduce the lead emissions and environmental burdens of LABs in China, namely establishing an effective LABs recycling system, enlarging the market share of the legal regenerated lead, regulating the production of regenerated lead, and avoiding the long-distance transportation of the waste LABs.

Keywords: lead-acid battery; material flow analysis; life cycle assessment; primary lead; regenerated lead (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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