Aqua Metals, Inc. announced that initial testing of a new methodology for producing battery manufacturing ready active material directly from the AquaRefining process has demonstrated promising results. A provisional patent has been filed to protect the new process, which is expected to provide added economic and environmental benefits for AquaRefining licensees. The active material, lead oxide, is the key ingredient used in a battery and comprises over half of a battery’s lead content. The traditional method utilized to produce oxide for lead batteries is a four-step process: (1) smelting lead recovered from used batteries or AquaRefining into lead briquettes; (2) refining that lead to the proper purity; (3) casting the lead into ingots and (4) remelting those ingots to be placed in an oxide reactor for oxide manufacturing. Aqua Metals’ innovative approach would help the $65 billion lead acid battery industry bypass steps 2 and 3 (refining and ingoting), resulting in significant savings in time, money and emissions as the AquaRefined lead briquettes would transition directly to the melting stage at the oxide manufacturer.