maxpayne
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Disassembling ZN/C battery to obtain zinc dust
I need to obtain some zinc metal, so i decided to take it from old heavy duty zinc/carbon battery.
Since battery are more or less tough to disassemble, I thought the hand saw might help to do the job faster. Then I could simply pull out the carbon
rod, stress out manganese dioxide to be left with zinc outer shell.
Are there any dangers if I simply hand saw through the battery, and what would be the best way to clean zinc shell and grind it to dust?
[Edited on 27-5-2012 by maxpayne]
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hissingnoise
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Zinc powder isn't expensive; why not just buy it?
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maxpayne
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Not expensive if you need much, but I need about 10-20 grams, no more. So batteries are more economical in my case. I have loads of old batteries in
my attic.
So, is it safe to cut through battery with hand saw? What are possibilities for explosion?
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Vargouille
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If you have C batteries, some of them (Duracell I know does) have a bag of zinc in the middle. You just have to wash it and let it dry and you'll be
good. There are some strange white balls mixed in with the zinc though, and I was unable to remove those without a lot of work, and I still think
there are a bunch left. Hopefully they won't mess with whatever you need the zinc for.
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Roger86
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I have experience with this specific type of batteries.
I can tell you there is absolutely no need for a saw, as those batteries are the cheapest available and also have tendency for being the easiest to
dissassemble.I have extracted more than kilo of manganese dioxide from these by using just ordinary scissors 
The worst thing about sawing them is you risk damaging the carbon rod, witch is made from graphite and is the best OTC solution for electrodes.Dont
waste them.
Also, if you dont know how to tell the type of the battery, make sure you learn it.When i started, i opened an alkaline battery and sprayed ammonia
all over my house, the smell  Also, note that MnO2 is unpleasant to remove if
stains should occur, unless of course you are willing to use powerful chemicals...
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maxpayne
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Thank you Roger86.
My main concern was some kind of explosion that could occur while sawing through. I remember as a kid, I was heating with lighter this kind of battery
and it exploded, none damage done Just to say, I don't like explosions at all.
Nice thing about graphite rod for electrolysis, however, I already have them, need zinc only. So, I'll saw them, maybe upload a pictures, but what
about the purification of zinc shell, and gritting it to dust?
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99chemicals
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A pipe cutter used for cutting copper pipes work very well for opening batteries. I have used it many times before to open the 6v lantern battery
cells.
If you are opening an alkaline battery that make sure the liquid doesn't splash on you wear eye protection and a face shield if you have one.
I opened up a alkaline battery once with a pipe cutter and got the KOH solution all over myself. I didn't get any in my eyes luckily. I only got it on my arms and managed to wash it off.
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Roger86
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I suggest you take a closer look at this photo i link from wikipedia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Disassembled_Zinc_Chloride...
I was unable to direct link it to this, because the forum software detects the :D part of the link as smiley.It should however work now.
As you can see, the amount of zinc in a battery is quite small.Most of that is MnO2 and the graphite rod.Not the way i'd obtain my zinc, but i'm
assuming you're just going to dig the batteries from recycle thrash, as would i.So since there is no cost of materials, i wouldn't discourage you.
I'dont know where you are located, but here in Finland, grocery stores have cardboard boxes you can put the batteries in for free and they dispose of
them for you.I have asked a few times if i could have some of the batteries for me, and they just let me have as much as i want.
On such scenario, i would pick more than the one type of batteries.This might not intrest everyone, but for some unexplainable reason i would like to
have some Cadmium...
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Arthur Dent
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The zinc casing of standard carbon/zinc batteries is my main source for clean, pure zinc. After several experimentations, I can confirm that the
washed and cleaned casings gives me very clean zinc salts with no Fe or Mn impurities.
My trick is to use a pair of wire snippers to cut a small dent on top of the battery where the zinc envelope and the steel top button meet, and then
grab the edge of the zinc casing and just peel it by holding the base of the battery with a silicon-covered vise grip. The long Zn strip can then be
washed with soap and water, and then dipped in hydrochloric for a few seconds. You can then do whatever you want with the resulting zinc. Big "D"
batteries are best because the outer shell is quite massive.
If you want Zinc dust, you can grind the cleaned zinc casings with a file (zinc is quite soft and easily ground).
It's just a mess to try to recuperate Zinc or MnO2 from Alkaline batteries, and absolutely not worth the trouble. Tried it once, got the KOH shower,
never tried again. Lesson learned.
Robert
--- Art is making something out of nothing and selling it. - Frank Zappa ---
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S.C. Wack
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IMHO it's no trouble at all, and have probably said so in several identical threads. No law against puncturing under water. It's certainly an easier
way to get zinc powder (certain brands at least) than powdering (molten) battery casings.
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maxpayne
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Today, I crushed one of the D battery with sledgehammer. I didn't know if it was an alkaline or not, so I put it under a thin metal sheet and beat it
up 
What I left with was broken carbon rod, manganese dioxide and of course zinc metal. I detached the zinc metal of protective sheet and cleaned it with
toothbrush under soapy water and now all I need to do is to grind it. It took me about 5 minutes. This is the fastest and simplest way to get zinc
from battery.
Final yield: little more than 10 grams of pure zinc from D type Zn/C battery.
I also found a video where carbon rod can easily be saved by punching the negative pole gently with a hammer. Don't recommend to punch alkaline
batteries though.
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Pyro
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you are better off getting your things from the batteries that Nurdrage uses, you can take apart those with a screwdriver.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knc1lSupAwQ
all above information is intellectual property of Pyro. |
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