Includes bibliographical references (pages 221-226) and index.
Contents:
Conclusion. Stop trying to recycle our way to a clean energy future. by Paul S. Sutter -- Introduction. Batteries Included. Telling stories about batteries ; Energy quality, the (in)visibility of energy, a culture of mobility, and a just transition ; Three stories : Lead-acid batteries, AA batteries, and lithium-ion batteries ; Toward industrial ecological literacy -- Chapter 1. Lead-Acid Batteries and a Culture of Mobility. The uses of lead-acid batteries ; What makes a lead-acid battery work? ; The human toll of making lead-acid batteries ; The primary and secondary lead industries ; Closing the loop on lead-acid batteries. Factor 1 : The new maintenance-free battery ; Factor 2 : The chronic threat of lead pollution ; Factor 3 : A cascade of regulatory action -- A perfect storm ; The long shadow of lead ; Importing metals and exporting hazards -- Chapter 2. AA Batteries and a Throwaway Culture. A short history of the many uses of disposable batteries ; Standards : From the No. 6 to the AA battery ; An incomplete material history of the zinc-carbon battery ; World War II and the spark of innovation ; Electrifying the race for raw materials ; Doing more with less : Transistors ; Toxic batteries and a national trash crisis ; The complicated case for recycling ; The short life of the recycled AA battery -- Chapter 3. Lithium-Ion Batteries, the Smartphone, and a Wireless Revolution. A long-overdue Nobel Prize ; The wireless revolution ; Taking apart a lithium-ion battery ; Lithium ; Cobalt : The "blood diamond" of the lithium-ion battery industry ; Graphite : The phoenix from the ashes ; Assembling a lithium-ion battery ; The exploding black box -- Chapter 4. Electric Cars, Tesla, and a Zero-Emissions Future. The Prius effect ; Jump-starting the electric car industry ; Is going electric worth it? ; The nickel connection ; Lithium redux ; An electric car future, always just around the corner ; Closing the loop ; -- Conclusion. Building a Clean Energy Future From the Ground Up. The material implications of a Green New Deal ; The immateriality of modern environmentalism ; Toward a material environmentalism ; Policy priorities for a clean energy future. Leverage government leadership to build a clean energy future from the ground up ; Promote policies to ensure responsible production and sourcing of minerals for a clean energy future ; Support new and expanded mining and refining operations in the United States ; Stop trying to recycle our way to a clean energy future.
Summary:
"Few technologies are more important to unlocking a clean-energy future than batteries. Batteries will help store electricity from solar panels and wind turbines. Batteries will help improve the reliability, versatility, and efficiency of the electric grid. And batteries will power a new generation of zero-emissions vehicles, from cars to bikes to planes. But while batteries may make it possible to scale up renewable energy sources and help to solve global warming while preserving the conveniences of modernity, this transition risks trading one set of resource dependencies and injustices for another, as batteries present their own unique environmental demands and consequences. How will scaling up the production of renewable energy technologies to meet the demands of a clean energy future affect workers and front-line communities who bear the risks and consequences of building this future? What role will batteries play in a "just transition" to a clean energy future? In this book, James Morton Turner explores the environmental history of the three most common battery types to yield insights in into the prospects, challenges, and material consequences of scaling up batteries to support a clean energy future. These types of batteries include : lead-acid batteries, which in part because of the hazards they pose, have become the most recycled product in the world ; disposable AA batteries, which although extraordinarily energy intensive to manufacture, became a little-known environmental success story when mercury was eliminated ; and lithium-ion batteries, which create unique environmental issues as they require a wider array of highly refined raw materials to manufacture and perform. Turner also engages three ideas that challenge the usual thinking about the past and future of energy and environmental sustainability : the importance of energy quality, the ways in which batteries make energy visible, and how batteries underpin a broader culture of mobility. Through this, batteries become the vehicle for an illuminating analysis of the social and environmental dimensions of modern systems of production and consumption. Considering batteries as the starting point for an investigation into the paradoxes of modern technology, this book tells a story of environmental degradation and social injustice, but also of technical advances and environmental sustainability toward a resilient future"-- Provided by publisher.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.