How do I dispose of a LI-PO battery

[Trickycopter]

I have a puffed up li-po I am getting worried about how do I dispose of it it looks like it is puffing up more I am not using it but would like to dispose of it will these things blow on there own Thanks have a great day Rick

[CX2Pilot]

Hi, I take all my batteries to Radio Shack. They dispose batteries for free.
They will put it in a special bag and send it out.

Tom

[CX2Pilot]

I also take my helicopter batteries to them. No size limit.

[Trickycopter]

Thanks CX2pilot soujnds like a safe way to get rid of the old batteries with out them ending up in a landfill Have a great day Rick

[DierWolf]

Lipo's are land fill safe.

search google for proper disposal method... natrually first thing you do is discharge it completely.

[Ronniebiggs]

This is what I do for a living. Im a chemist and dispose of lithium batterys all the time. Lithium is water reactive and will potentially set on fire if you damage it and put it in water. It has the Un number 3090, class 9 (Which means miscellaneous as these batteries dont fall into the other class sections)

It is not landfill safe. It is classed as a hazardous substance and must be disposed of as special waste. However over here you can put anything in the normal waste bin and nothing is said. So you could just put it in the bin. :YeaBaby:

[DierWolf]

Well,

Hmmm someones really wrong LOL..

Check this out.

http://www.thunderpowerrc.com/PDF/DISPOSAL-OF-LIPO-BATTERIES.pdf

to save you all the trouble i will paste the contents here :) i also thought it was hogwash coz i know the hazards of water+lipo, but figured these people know what they are talking about.... guess not (corrected by the resident chemist)

** DISPOSAL OF LIPO BATTERIES **
Unlike NiCd batteries, lithium-polymer batteries are environmentally friendly.
For safety reasons, it’s best that LiPo cells be fully discharged before disposal (however,
if physically damaged it is NOT recommended to discharge LiPo cells before disposal -
see below for details). The batteries must also be cool before proceeding with disposal
instructions. To dispose of LiPo cells and packs:
1. If any LiPo cell in the pack has been physically damaged, resulting
in a swollen cell or a split or tear in a cell’s foil covering, do NOT discharge the battery.
Jump to step 5.
2. Place the LiPo battery in a fireproof container or bucket of sand.
3. Connect the battery to a LiPo discharger. Set the discharge cutoff
voltage to the
lowest possible value. Set the discharge current to a C/10 value, with “C” being the
capacity rating of the pack. For example, the “1C” rating for a 1200mAh battery is 1.2A,
and that battery’s C/10 current value is (1.2A / 10) can be used,
such as a power resistor or set of light bulbs as long as the discharge current doesn’t
exceed the C/10 value and cause an overheating condition.
For LiPo packs rated at 7.4V and 11.1V , connect a 150 ohm resistor with a power rating
of 2 watts (commonly found at Radio Shack)to the pack’s positive and negative terminals
to safely discharge connecting it to an ESC/ motor system and allowing the motor to run
indefinitely until no power remains to further cause the system to function.
4. Discharge the battery until its voltage reaches 1.0V per cell or
lower. For resistive load type discharges, discharge the battery for up to 24 hours.
5. Submerse the battery into bucket or tub of salt water. This container should have a lid,
but it should not need to be air-tight. Prepare a plastic container (do not use metal) of cold
water. And mix in 1/2 cup of salt per gallon of water. Drop the battery into the salt water.
Allow the battery to remain in the tub of salt water for at least 2 weeks.
6. Remove the LiPo battery from the salt water, wrap it in newspaper or paper towels and
place it in the normal trash. They are landfill safe.

[Ronniebiggs]

No im not wrong m8.
Here we go then:
Saft is a company that makes lithium batteries in the north east of England. to treat them they soak them for 4 weeks in water (Not salt water). What this does is causes a violent but controlled reaction that causes the lithium to lose its charge and causes the lithium itself to be unable to take up electrons and hence hold a charge. As there is a lack of combustable material in the pool are there is no flame. But it is a strickly no spark area.

What I meant by a fire risk is simple. Elemental Lithium will react violently with water producing hydrogen which is an extremly flammable gas, which sets on fire with the aid of a spark (A battery holding charge tends to be a good spark:lol:) then you have fire. Result flame and burning of the paper and things in a bin.

The approved carriage of dangerous goods by road act (UN approved book) states a UN number of 3090 which has a class 9 (Miscellaneous). Because it has a classification this means that it is hazardous for landfill. I work for the biggest waste management company in the world and deal with lithium batterys on almost a daily basis. I wrote the disposal procedure!

The regulations may vary from country to country. But all United nations countries follow the UN books which we all use for classification and or disposal.:smokin:

[Ronniebiggs]

O ye another thing. When we dispose of them as they are spent from saft. We pack them in sand as you said in 45 gallon drums and then send them for high temperature incineration. If we could landfill them we would as landfill is approx £15 per tonne and incin is £68/tonne.

"Lithium metal is flammable and potentially explosive when exposed to air and especially water"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium (Yes I know its wilkipedia!)

But the main point is yes if you put it in the bin. You wont get caught! Most people wouldnt even think of checking they would just put it straight into the bin anyway!

[tobeornottobe]

All good stuff. Question - I had a Lipo catch fire on me after a fairly mild crash which didn't visibly damage it. At first it puffed rapidly and then smoke followed by flames started issuing forth. Presumably there was an internal short circuit, but what is happening chemically here? I kicked the battery into a convenient puddle which extinguished it, but surely the lithium should have reacted with the water making the fire worse?

Tobe

[Ronniebiggs]

The lithium cell must have damaged to the point where the electron flow was impeded which would cause resistance and then heat then fire. The puffing up of the battery is the production of hydrogen from the cell, this could offoccured via several resons. Then the battery caught fire. At this point the lithium is becoming extensivly damaged and changing from elemental lithium to lithium carbonate and various other less reactive compounds. You then kicked it in some water. It went out as there wasnt enough elemental lithium arranged in its thin strips to cause a fire and as I said water makes lithium produce hydrogen it doesnt neccessarily cause it to set on fire. Its other things that cause the spark which ignites the hydrogen. The only way it to self ignite is if the lithium heats up fast enough on contact with the water to reach its flash point then it would self ignite. As yours was so damaged this wouldnt happen.

[DierWolf]

didnt say you were wrong :) i said someone (meaning the site i got that from)

[Ronniebiggs]

LOL.:YeaBaby:

Ye I know too much about the damn batteries. Dont want to say too much but we have had so many incidents with these batteries that we dont like to deal with them now. We opperate a same day incineration plan at the moment as we have had whole sites burn down with them!

They are increadible good batteries but very tricky for disposal.

:lol:

O BTW still havent checked my motor:DOH Will have to check it soon getting withdrawell symptoms:thumbup:

[DierWolf]

on another note, yes its light and all LIpo batteries... but think i'll invest in some A123 packs and build them myselves... Much faster charging and still good flight time without all the hazards :)

theres a video on youtube of a guy running the Esmart on them

[tobeornottobe]

The lithium cell must have damaged to the point where the electron flow was impeded which would cause resistance and then heat then fire. The puffing up of the battery is the production of hydrogen from the cell, this could offoccured via several resons. Then the battery caught fire. At this point the lithium is becoming extensivly damaged and changing from elemental lithium to lithium carbonate and various other less reactive compounds. You then kicked it in some water. It went out as there wasnt enough elemental lithium arranged in its thin strips to cause a fire and as I said water makes lithium produce hydrogen it doesnt neccessarily cause it to set on fire. Its other things that cause the spark which ignites the hydrogen. The only way it to self ignite is if the lithium heats up fast enough on contact with the water to reach its flash point then it would self ignite. As yours was so damaged this wouldnt happen.

Thank you Ronnie. On the original topic, why not connect the Lipo directly to a car battery, and after the subsequent interesting events sweep up the almost certainly inert debris and put it in the bin? (joke)

[Trickycopter]

So what all of you are saying is I should take them to Radio Shack and let them deal with them I will discharge the ones that will not charge but the one puffed one I am affraid of just take it to Radio shack and tell them that it is not discharged. have a great day Rick

[Ronniebiggs]

Yes. Let radio shack dispose of them in the proper manner.:thumbup: