In a white paper study on the impact that Schoolcells Rechargeables have on the environment and the emission of Greenhouse Gases (GHG).
The study shows that in order for one person to operate a MP3 player for 20 hours per week for one year that a total of 131 single-use alkaline batteries would be required compared to 8 Schoolcell XL™ Rechargeable Alkaline batteries. Based on this information and the energy required to make these batteries in Amherst, Nova Scotia, Canada; GHG emissions produced would be reduced by 94% if consumers used Schoolcell XL™ Rechargeable Alkaline batteries instead of single-use alkaline batteries.
The internal study of the amount of GHG generated during the production of AA and AAA size rechargeable and single-use alkaline batteries. The study included only the energy used to manufacture the batteries, not the additional energy required to make the raw materials needed to produce the batteries and not the energy required for the transportation of the raw materials to the plant and the batteries to the retailers. It should be noted that production lines are capable of producing rechargeable and single-use alkaline batteries; hence, the same GHG footprint applies to both rechargeable and single-use alkaline batteries.
Based on energy generation figures issued by Environment Canada for Nova Scotia, each kilowatt-hour of electricity consumed produces approximately 729 grams of GHG emissions. Because Nova Scotia produces most of its electricity from burning coal, greenhouse gas emissions per kilowatt-hour of electricity consumed are relatively high. This figure is not out of line with the national average for US electricity production, which is 1.37 pounds per kWh (Source: EPA, Energy Information Administration, Oct. 2006) or 623 grams of greenhouse gas emissions for each kilowatt-hour of electricity consumed. Heating of the plant is done with oil, which produces 2,500 grams of greenhouse gas emissions per litre of oil. The total energy consumed for a one year period was recorded and applied to the total combined battery production quantity for that year. As a result of this calculation, one AA or AAA battery produced, produces a GHG emission value of 132 grams96 approximately 6 times the weight of 1 AA battery and 12 times the weight of 1 AAA battery. This value applies equally to single-use and rechargeable alkaline batteries produced.
Next, an application case study was calculated for MP3 audio players operated by single-use alkaline batteries vs. Schoolcell Rechargeable Alkaline batteries. In this case study, the number of batteries required by 10 million people to play 1,100 hours (20 hours per week) of music per year was calculated and the associated GHG emissions were computed each year for a 4 year period. While a total of 524 AAA single-use alkaline batteries would be needed by each person, 32 Schoolcell XL™ Rechargeable Alkaline batteries would be required. For 10 million people a total of 690 tons of GHG emissions would be generated over 4 years when using single-use alkaline batteries compared to 42 tons for Schoolell XL™ Rechargeable Alkaline batteries. This difference would result in a 94% reduction in the emission of GHG when using the Rechargeable Alkaline batteries.
While the waste generated by the disposal of batteries and the toxic material used in several battery types has been a topic of discussion in many countries around the world, we feel that GHG emissions created in the production of batteries are extremely important and should be better understood by retailers and consumers, commented Dr. Josef Daniel-Ivad, Vice President, Research and Development. We feel this is a very relevant study because unlike other rechargeable batteries our XL™ Rechargeable Alkaline batteries can be used in any application in which single-use alkaline batteries are used.
Schoolcell's new and improved AA and AAA size XL™ Rechargeable Alkaline batteries contain no heavy metals and can be recharged hundreds of times leading to less greenhouse gas emissions and waste entering landfill compared to single-use batteries. XL™ is the only rechargeable battery that can be used in any application that uses single-use alkaline batteries. It also offers several performance and cost advantages over other rechargeable batteries including an industry leading 7 year shelf life. XL™ batteries can be recharged 100-500 times depending on use and frequency of charging.