EXCLUSIVE: An American firm has broken ground on the world’s first ‘green’ lead-acid recycling plant as it looks to eradicate smelting’s polluting reputation.
US start-up Aqua Metals is set to enter the commercial recycling industry with its AquaRefining™ technology which aims to replace conventional smelting with a water-based ‘greener’ alternative.
However, the company is staying tight-lipped about the technology while it awaits approval on 33 patents connected with the technology.
What we do know is involves electrowinning, requires 30% less energy than smelting, produces no toxic waste (think slag, lead dust or sulfur dioxide) and uses scalable electrochemical modules.
Aqua Metal CEO, Steve Clarke told BBB: “One of the benefits of our process is that it is economic at much smaller scale that conventional smelting can be. In other words its commercially feasible to build a distributed network of small scale AquaRefineries.”
If all goes to plan, the company will begin producing 80 tonnes of secondary lead a day at its plant on Nevada’s Tahoe Reno Industrial site (known as TRIC)— home to Tesla’s forthcoming Gigafactory— by mid 2016.
Both grid machine maker Wirtz Manufacturing and battery distribution and collection company Battery Systems Inc are partners.
Wirtz manufacturing will produce the battery breaking system while Battery Systems Inc will supply batteries from its center situated next-door to Aqua Metals’ plant.
The company plans to build more of its own facilities in the US and possibly Europe.
Clarke said: “We are just starting to look at battery companies and lead producers as potential joint venture partners for additional recycling facilities in the US, Europe and other parts of the World.”
The technology has been evaluated by US Department of Agriculture as part of Aqua Metal’s Loan Guarantee Program. Others have undertaken detailed validation but the company is under Non Disclosure Agreements and cannot reveal their names.
