October 2024 Fire Report: A Discussion with Jeffrey Spangenberger of Argonne National Laboratory’s ReCell Center

The waste and recycling industry has experienced a concerning number of fire incidents over the past five months, surpassing the typical amount seen during the summer months and progressing further toward the possibility of 2024 being the highest year ever for industry fire incidents.

In this month’s article, I highlight the latest fire data, the growing challenges within the industry and the ongoing efforts Fire Rover, the ReCell Center and others are making to mitigate these fire risks and advance safer manufacturing, disposal and recycling practices.

September 2024 Fire Data

In September, the waste and recycling industry experienced 37 fires. Of these, 20 occurred in waste, paper and plastic operations, 13 in metal operations and one each in rubber, construction and demolition, electronics recycling and hazardous material operations. Seven of these events were considered catastrophic, based on the National Waste & Recycling Association and Resource Recycling Systems’ definition from a report earlier this year, which considers losses of $400,000 or more as catastrophic. Throughout the month, Fire Rover successfully responded to 350-plus confirmed fire incidents at our clients’ facilities.

Over the past eight years, the industry has experienced a seasonal increase in fires, which I have referred to as the “summertime spike.” This spike is caused by heightened heat and dryness during the warmer months and is not solely due to the rise of lithium-ion batteries in the waste and recycling streams. However, these batteries have been a significant factor in the increase in fire incidents since 2016. Typically, this trend of elevated fire incidents tapers off by July, but not this year. To date in 2024, we have seen elevated fire activity through September, marking a notable change from years prior.

Focusing on the five-month period from May to September, it has become clear that we are experiencing the highest 150-day total for fire incidents in our history. As I have stated many times before, the most concerning aspect of this increase is it only represents a portion of the overall industry. Based on the Environmental Research & Education Foundation’s 2013 estimate of about 10,000 materials recovery facilities, transfer stations and scrap metal facilities, Fire Rover currently protects more than 7% of the waste and recycling industry—and that number is growing. Additionally, we typically safeguard our clients' highest-volume, most revenue-generating assets. Yet, fire incidents across the industry continue to rise.

It is unclear whether the increase in fires this summer signals a new trend or is just an anomaly. But even if the remaining months follow historical averages—around 24 fires from October to December—we are still on track for the highest number of reported facility fires on record in the U.S. and Canada.

If we stay on trend, and factor in the typically lower number of fire incidents in the latter half of the year, we are still on track for the highest year ever for fire incidents. Compounding the issue is the skyrocketing number of end-of-life batteries, creating a "perfect storm" with increased hazards in the waste and recycling streams. Unfortunately, there are few viable solutions on the horizon, and any future solutions must make a meaningful impact and deliver a positive return on investment to justify the costs.

A Discussion with Jeffrey Spangenberger of ReCell Center

In September 2019, I had the opportunity to present at a battery forum organized by the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) Illinois chapter and John Sliwicki of LRS. Sliwicki’s dedication to safety and understanding of the 2018 surge in industry fire incidents made it clear that collaboration was essential to finding solutions. It was at this event that I first met and co-presented with Jeffrey Spangenberger, director of the ReCell Center and group leader in materials recycling R&D at the Argonne National Laboratory. At the time, we were still in the early stages of addressing lithium-ion battery fire incidents, but Spangenberger’s presentation left a lasting impression on me. Before hearing him speak, I was unaware of the government’s crucial role in helping the industry tackle such challenges.

Fast forward to this year, Spangenberger asked me to join his panel at the 2024 ReCell Center Industry Collaboration Meeting. The event brought together key stakeholders from across the battery supply chain to discuss critical issues, including raw material extraction, manufacturing, usage in the field, reuse and recycling.

I recently had the chance to sit down with Spangenberger after the Electronic Scrap Conference in Orlando to get his insights and updates on the important work being done at the ReCell Center. Below are some takeaways from our conversation.

What is the ReCell Center?

Spangenberger: The ReCell Center is an advanced battery recycling initiative led by Argonne National Laboratory in Lemont, Illinois, with funding from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Vehicle Technologies Office. It brings together several U.S. national laboratories to advance battery recycling technologies and support the development of a stronger domestic supply chain.

One of ReCell’s primary goals is to research and develop advanced battery recycling technologies and concepts that can reduce the cost of new batteries and enhance the overall sustainability of battery production. Another key objective is to foster collaboration among stakeholders in the battery industry, facilitating the exchange of ideas and raising awareness of shared challenges. To support this, ReCell hosts an annual Industry Collaboration Meeting. This year’s meeting, held on August 27 and 28, featured presentations on ReCell’s ongoing projects, insights from government agencies and updates from industry leaders.

Where does the ReCell Center fit within our national scientific footprint?

Spangenberger: Argonne National Laboratory is one of the 17 national laboratories in the U.S. and serves as a multidisciplinary science and engineering research center. Here, leading scientists and engineers collaborate to tackle some of humanity’s most pressing challenges, such as developing affordable clean energy and protecting the environment. Established in the 1940s out of the University of Chicago’s work on the Manhattan Project, Argonne’s mission is to make a significant impact—from the atomic level to global scales.

The lab works closely with universities, industry partners and other national laboratories to address scientific questions and conduct experiments that are often too complex for any single institution to handle alone. In addition to Argonne, other national labs involved in the ReCell Center include Oak Ridge National Laboratory, National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Idaho National Laboratory, all of which have similar but focused efforts.

How does the lab work with various stakeholders?

Spangenberger: The lab works with stakeholders in a variety of ways, from phone calls, tours and meetings for information sharing to large-scale, multimillion-dollar collaborative projects that span basic research, applied research and plant development. If you are interested in starting a conversation about batteries, a great first step is to visit the ReCell Center’s website. There, you can sign up for the mailing list to stay informed about upcoming Industry Collaboration Meetings and other important updates.

Why do you believe it is important to increase education and collaboration on the fire issues the battery industry is facing?

Spangenberger: The reality is most stakeholders in our group are focused on upstream solutions to these challenges and are actively seeking safer alternatives within the supply chain. Your presentation on fires at recycling facilities, often caused by lithium-ion batteries, was eye-opening for many attendees at the Industry Collaboration Meeting in August. It shed light on critical issues the waste and recycling industry faces when managing end-of-life batteries. With this information, we hope awareness will spread more quickly to other stakeholders and allow us all to better collaborate to mitigate this problem.

Conclusion

The fire epidemic we have been facing since 2016 is driven by numerous factors, with stakeholders across various sectors having different motivations and incentives. To find the solutions, we need all stakeholders to work together and for every voice to be heard. In the waste and recycling industry, we are doing our best to address the fire hazards caused by improperly disposed batteries, but real progress requires continued collaboration with end-of-life stakeholders as they play a crucial role in educating our upstream colleagues about the challenges we face.

There are some new, emerging technologies that could lead to safer materials for battery manufacturing, but these innovations have been slow to reach the market. However, the more we share knowledge about the issues the entire supply chain is facing, the more we can educate the public on safe battery disposal and recycling. This in turn will allow the scientific community and private sector to focus on developing safer batteries with fewer negative impacts in the future.

Ryan Fogelman, JD/MBA, is a partner at Fire Rover. He is focused on bringing innovative safety solutions to market, and two of his solutions have won the distinguished Edison Innovation Award for Industrial Safety and Consumer Products. He has been compiling and publishing the “Reported Waste & Recycling Facility Fires in the US/CAN” since February 2016 and the “Waste & Recycling Facility Fires Annual Report.” Two of Fogelman’s companies have made it on the Inc.’s 5000 fastest-growing private companies in the U.S. list; most recently, Fire Rover ranked 1,517 in 2024 with a three-year revenue growth of 341%. Additionally, Fogelman is on the National Fire Protection Association’s Technical Committee for Hazard Materials. (Connect with Ryan on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanjayfogelman or email at [email protected])