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DG ENVIRONMENT Establishing harmonised methods to determine the capacity of all portable and automotive batteries and rules for the use of a label indicating the capacity of these batteries [TENDER NO. ENV.G.A/ETU/2007/0080r] Final Report September 2008 July, 2007 Contact Bio Intelligence Service S.A.S. Cécile des Abbayes – Sanaée Iyama ℡ + 33 (0) 1 56 20 28 98 [email protected] [email protected] Disclaimer The project team does not accept any liability for any direct or indirect damage resulting from the use of this report or its content. Please note that this report contains the results of research by the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Commission. Note Please note that all reproductions of IEC standards have been deleted from the present report as these documents are for exclusive use and their reproduction is prohibited. European Commission DG Environment 2 September 2008 Final report - Battery capacity determination and labelling Contents 1. Introduction ...................................................................................................... 5 2. Background And Objectives ........................................................................... 6 2.1. Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 6 2.1.1 Battery Directive (2006/66/EC) ................................................................................. 6 2.2. Battery Technology And Types ......................................................................................... 9 2.2.1 Battery Design ........................................................................................................... 9 2.2.2 Battery Types ........................................................................................................... 11 2.2.3 Battery Market Structure ........................................................................................ 13 2.3. Objectives Of This Study .................................................................................................. 15 2.3.1 The Challenge Of Capacity Labelling .................................................................... 16 3. Approach And Methodology ......................................................................... 19 3.1. General Approach ............................................................................................................. 19 3.2. Project Methodology ......................................................................................................... 19 4. Task 1: Definition Of Harmonised Methods ................................................. 20 4.1. Task 1.1 – Background Literature Survey ....................................................................... 20 4.1.1 Categories Of Products .......................................................................................... 20 4.1.2 International Standards For Batteries ................................................................... 43 4.2. Task 1.2 – Capacity Determination Methods .................................................................. 51 4.2.1 Capacity Definition .................................................................................................. 51 4.2.2 Parameters Influencing Capacity .......................................................................... 54 4.2.3 Standard Methods To Evaluate Capacity.............................................................. 62 4.3. Task 1.3 – Harmonisation Of Methods ............................................................................ 70 4.3.1 Harmonisation Within Each Category Of Batteries ............................................. 71 4.3.2 Harmonisation Of Methods Across Categories Of Batteries .............................. 88 4.3.3 Compliance Requirements ..................................................................................... 98 4.4. Task 1.4 – Stakeholder Consultation ............................................................................. 105 5. Task 2 – Capacity label design and application ........................................ 106 5.1. Task 2.1 – Capacity Information .................................................................................... 106 5.2. Task 2.2 – Label Design And Layout ............................................................................. 108 5.2.1 Existing Battery Labelling Constraints ............................................................... 108 5.2.2 Considerations For Integrating Capacity Labelling ........................................... 112 5.2.3 Labelling Options .................................................................................................. 116 5.3. Exemptions ...................................................................................................................... 135 5.3.1 Exemption For Primary Portable Batteries ......................................................... 135 5.3.2 Exemption For Secondary Portable Batteries .................................................... 138 European Commission DG Environment September 2008 3 Final report - Battery capacity determination and labelling 5.4. Task 2.3 – Analysis Of Options ...................................................................................... 139 6. Conclusions .................................................................................................. 150 ANNEXES…………………………………………....………………………………………………………..151 European Commission DG Environment 4 September 2008 Final report - Battery capacity determination and labelling 1. INTRODUCTION Batteries play an important role in everyday life, powering devices as diverse as toys, hearing aids or laptops. Without them, the current miniaturisation of electronic devices and portable applications would be impossible. Technological advances are complemented by rising investment and falling prices. At the same time, environmental concerns are growing, with hazardous substances such as mercury being banned from batteries and emphasis being put on lowering the environmental impact of batteries. Armed with increasing knowledge about the environmental impacts of batteries, the European Union decided to revise its 1991 Battery Directive, incorporating a wider range of provisions. End-users have a significant part to play: through their buying practices, they shape the battery market and the nature of the battery waste stream. If they are to make a positive impact on the environmental footprint of batteries, they must make informed choices at the time of purchase. Thus, awareness of recycling possibilities and metal content is already promoted through transparent labelling. Another essential information targets capacity, which reflects the ability of batteries to deliver energy and give valuable data on their adequacy with specific end-uses. Choosing the right battery for a device can help reduce the amount of battery waste through increased product-life. Yet capacity information is worthless and misleading if no harmonised methods for capacity measurement and labelling are defined. This is one of the requirements of the Battery Directive. From the manufacturers’ standpoint, it is essential that capacity data be provided through harmonised, controllable and repeatable methods in order to ensure fair competition and consistent quality values. This is currently not the case: much of the battery capacity information is displayed according to no standardised method – if at all. In this context, this study proposes to establish harmonised methods to determine the capacity of all portable and automotive batteries and rules for the use of a label indicating the capacity of these batteries. The study starts by an introductory section presenting the background (regulatory, market related, and technical) and objectives of the study. A second section describes the overall approach and the methodology followed during the study, based on a structure in two tasks which are then subsequently presented: Task 1 presents the development of harmonised methods to determine the capacity of batteries, and Task 2 presents different labelling options. European Commission DG Environment September 2008 5 Final report - Battery capacity determination and labelling 2. BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES 2.1. INTRODUCTION The EU market for batteries is estimated to be about 800,000 tonnes of automotive batteries, 190,000 tonnes of industrial batteries and 160,000 tonnes of consumer batteries every year 1. These batteries contain metals, which might pollute the environment, more specifically at the end of their life-cycle. Mercury, lead and cadmium are seen as the most dangerous substances present in batteries. The "Battery Directive" 2 was meant to promote a less-polluted environment by, among others, minimising harmful substances in batteries. The first version of this directive is the Council Directive of 18 March 1991 on Batteries and Accumulators Containing Certain Dangerous Substances (91/157/EEC). Following a public consultation phase and an extended impact assessment, the Commission made the proposal for a new directive in 2003. The proposal aimed to establish minimum targets for the collection and recycling of waste batteries and to place the responsibility to finance the related costs on the producers (principle of Extended Producer Responsibility). 2.1.1 BATTERY DIRECTIVE (2006/66/EC) The Battery Directive, covering batteries and accumulators and waste batteries