Every year, thousands of fires break out in waste processing centers worldwide. In the vast majority of cases, about 80% of the time, the culprit is the same: an improperly disposed-of lithium-ion battery. A German firm is working on a device that could catch batteries early before they are inadvertently processed.
Lithium-ion batteries are found in many everyday products, from consumer electronics to life-saving medical devices. Because they store a large amount of energy in a small space, they can pose a serious fire hazard.
Combine this danger with the combustible and toxic materials found in recycling plants, and it's a recipe for disaster. A study by the National Waste and Recycling Association found a 41% increase in the rate of "catastrophic losses" caused by battery fires in the last five years.
The DangerSort project hopes to mitigate this risk by identifying and separating lithium-ion batteries before they are run through processing centers.
As Johannes Leisner, one of the project's leads, explained to Tech Xplore, "We are developing a sensor-based sorting system that uses X-ray technology and artificial intelligence to detect hazardous lithium-ion batteries and separate them from the rest of the waste stream at an early stage."
The device will work like airport security scanners. The sensor is mounted above the waste conveyor belt. With the aid of AI, DangerSort will sift through the sensor's many images to pick out hazards. The researchers have modified an AI system used for autonomous driving and retrained it to detect batteries.
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Of course, it's still much better to prevent lithium-ion batteries and other harmful waste from entering the plants in the first place. E-waste is a growing problem and is often improperly disposed of. The UN estimates that up to 82 million tons of e-waste could be created annually by 2030. Properly disposing of unwanted electronics is better for the planet and can also be profitable.
The DangerSort prototype is due to be installed in June 2025, and the initial project will run until August. If successful, it could be employed at recycling plants worldwide. This will not only make the centers much safer, but it will save billions in prevented damage and insurance costs.
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