Is this where the nickel from Prius comes from?

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Devil's Advocate @ Jan 30 2007, 02:09 PM) [snapback]382899[/snapback]</div>

Sorry, but this doesn't pass the sniff test. Someone may have actually said this at the time, but that doesn't make it true. If GM had given two hoots for the environment in 2000 they would not have been selling Hummers, and actively trying push people into SUVs.

Battery recycling is a pretty clean process, as long as its done correctly. Like anything, there have been examples of it being done badly with predictable consequences. The move to NimH from PbA was if anything a large positive move, as nickel and KOH are fairly benign compared to lead and sulfuric acid. I'm sure by far the greatest amount of pollution that goes into a car is the thousands of pounds of steel, and the thousands of gallons of gas it burns in its lifetime. Both are very dirty industries. Given that the EV1 and now Prius use less of both, its hard to imagine any reasonable case for their being dirty by comparison to "normal" cars.

The price of lead and nickel are all the motivation people need to make sure these batteries go to the right place. Given that scrap lead is currently over $1/lb, and Nickel is currently selling at $13/lb, what would you do with a dead 1000 lb EV1 battery pack?

Rob

 

The EV1 switched to NiMH during production. Lead acid batteries were only used in the beginning. Furthermore, INCO (the company that owns the Nickel facilities in Sudbury) had largely cleaned up their act by the mid 90's, so by the time the Prius came along the site was much improved. Also, stainless steel is 8-20% nickel, so large vehicles with lots of chrome (which also has nickel in it), probably have more nickel in them than a Prius.