Pardon the late response here, but I haven't read this thread for a period of several weeks. Tonight, I was impressed by an inference in your message [VLNC's message, actually] that phosphate is good, cobalt is bad. Quoting from your post:
"At least one company is doing something about it. Valence Technology in
Henderson, Nev., has found an economical way to substitute phosphates
for cobalt in lithium batteries.
"No cobalt means fewer toxic elements and less chance of pollution from
spent cells.
"'Phosphate is dirt. It's found in nature,' said Stephan Godevais, president
and chief executive of Valence. 'Because of those characteristics, it is
the most environmentally friendly battery chemistry out there.'"
It was but a few years back that phosphate was the whipping boy for all of the environmentalists. Remember how Tide and other detergent brands promoted new non-phosphate formulations? Phosphate was the primary culprit in the foaming of household waste waters. As those waters drained into ponds, they promoted the overgrowth of algae and development of anaerobic conditions [i.e., de-oxygenation] which wiped out native fish populations.
Now Godevais says, "Phosphate is dirt. It's found in nature", as if he's promoting motherhood and apple pie.
And cobalt is bad because it's not found in nature? Where do we get cobalt from? From genuinely natural mineral deposits.
Spin is spin. This one doesn't quite sound natural. |
