Abstract: In the recycling of used nickel/metal hydride storage batteries, the battery scrap is dissolved in sulphuric acid after mechanical separation of the coarse constituents by magnetic and air separation. A solvent extraction is performed with the digestion solution, from which the rare earths (from the hydrogen-storage alloys in the negative electrodes) and iron and aluminum have been selected by precipitation, under conditions pH, choice of solvent, volumetric ratio of the phases) which are such that the aqueous phase contains nickel and cobalt in the same atomic ratio as that in which they were present in the scrap. This makes possible a joint recovery by simultaneous electrolysis, in which process the deposition product forms a master alloy which can be used, together with the precipitated rare earths which have been electrometallurgically reprocessed as misch metal, for the production of fresh hydrogen-storage alloys.

Abstract: A prismatic galvanic cell having a large number of electrode pairs separated by separators is provided with electrode plates having current tapping lugs which extend from upper or lateral edges of the plates, and which include flexible tongues extending along and parallel to the plate edges. The flexible tongues of grouped electrode plates of the same polarity are connected to the terminal posts of the cell in a manner which precludes short circuiting and which accommodates the increased bending stresses typical of such cells.