Doe Run Company
Encyclopedia
Doe Run Resources Corporation (registered to do business as the Doe Run Company) is the largest integrated lead
producer in North America
and the largest primary lead producer in the western world. It owns two primary lead smelters (only one is active), five mills (four of which are active), several mines, the world's largest secondary lead smelter, all in southeast Missouri
, USA, a polymetallic smelter at La Oroya
and copper
mine at Cobriza, both in Peru
, and lead fabricating facilities in Arizona
and Washington. It is wholly owned by the Renco Group
which is in turn wholly owned by family trusts established by the company's Chairman and CEO, Ira Rennert
. Total primary production in 2005 was 376,200 metric tons of lead, equivalent to 11.5% of world production that year. Doe Run also produced 123,800 metric tons of secondary lead and smaller tonnages of zinc
and copper in concentrate.
, better known as St. Joe, which started lead mining on a small scale in southeastern Missouri. Despite the isolation and hardships of those days it prospered and in 1892 it started up its smelter in Herculaneum
, where all smelting was consolidated in 1920. It was active elsewhere and eventually owned mines (now disposed of) in South America and zinc operations in New York State, USA. It also built up a portfolio of gold mines and prospects, including Chile's
largest gold mine, El Indio
, which became St. Joe Gold. It was sold in the 1980s and is now part of Barrick Gold
.
With the gradual exhaustion of the Old Lead Belt after World War II
, St. Joe and others explored other areas in southeastern Missouri and found more lead/zinc deposits, including the extensive Viburnum Trend on which Doe Run's U.S. mining operations are now concentrated.
In 1981, St. Joe was acquired by the Fluor Corporation. In 1986 St. Joe and Homestake Lead formed a short lived partnership called the Doe Run Company which brought Homestake's Buick mine, mill and smelter into St. Joe. After dissolution
of the partnership, St. Joe converted the Buick smelter for lead recycling, which grew to be the biggest single site facility in the world. In 1994 the Renco Group
acquired St. Joe from Fluor and renamed the company the Doe Run Resources Corporation, registered to do business as the Doe Run Company.
In 1994 Doe Run acquired lead fabricating facilities and in 1997 it more than doubled in size with the purchase of the La Oroya smelter and Cobriza copper mine in Peru. 1998 saw the acquisition of ASARCO's Missouri Lead Division and its two mines and mills.
carbonate
rocks though it contains an unusually high proportion of lead.
The principal minerals are galena
(lead, PbS) and sphalerite
(zinc, ZnS) with lesser amounts of chalcopyrite
(copper, CuFeS2). At the end of October 2005, ore reserves were approximately 34 million proven and probable tons at average grades of 6.23% lead, 1.36% zinc and 0.26% copper.
As of end October 2006, the company had six production shafts feeding four mills with a combined capacity of 21,000 metric tons per day which produced 255,600 metric tons of lead in concentrate plus zinc and copper byproducts. This was transported by public road to the primary lead smelter at Herculaneum, 56 km (34.8 mi) south of St Louis. It has a capacity of 227,000 metric tons of lead annually but is limited by permit to 181,500 metric tons. 2006 production was 140,300 metric tons of primary lead. The balance of the lead concentrates plus the zinc and copper concentrates were sold to other smelters One shaft, mill and smelter (Glover) were not in operation..
The recycling smelter at Boss
, Missouri, handles old batteries, scrap lead and lead-bearing hazardous waste. It is permitted to produce 152,410 metric tons of lead annually and in 2005 produced only 123,800 metric tons of secondary lead due to a tight scrap market. Fabricated Products produces value-added lead products such as lead oxide
, lead sheet and lead pipes at facilities in Arizona and Washington.
in the community and lead in community soils adjacent to the smelter. It has also spent US$10.4 million on buying up to 160 residential properties close to the smelter that are contaminated and is to clean up contaminated soils. The company has paid for research developing an electro- chemical replacement, Flubor
for primary smelting of lead ore.
for more details
Doe Run owns 99.97% of the La Oroya polymetallic smelter. It was established by the American Cerro de Pasco Corporation in 1922, was nationalized and became the property of Centromin in 1974 and was then privatized in 1997 when Doe Run bought it for US$247 million. It consists of a copper and lead smelter and zinc refinery
. These are closely integrated and have additional circuits to recover byproducts, particularly from the 'dirty concentrates' produced by a number of local mines They include gold
and silver
(mainly from refinery residues), antimony
, arsenic trioxide
, bismuth
, cadmium
, indium
, selenium
, tellurium, sulfuric acid
and oleum
. Production in 2006 was 48,600 metric tons of copper, 120,600 metric tons of lead, 45,000 metric tons of zinc, 34 million troy ounces (1,060 metric tons) of silver and 67,000 troy ounces (2,080 kilograms) of gold.
The company also owns the Cobriza copper mine, south of La Oroya, bought for US$7.5 million to ensure at least part of the concentrate supply to the smelter. It produced 16,244 metric tons of copper in concentrate in 2006 and had reserves of 6.5 million metric tons grading 1.2% copper.
Until 1997 the smelter had been run without any concern for the environment with the result that the hills around the smelter had been reduced to a moonscape by sulfur dioxide
from the smelters; the already polluted river had been made even more polluted by untreated process water; the soil in the city and surroundings had become contaminated with lead; the people in the city, especially the young, had dangerous levels of lead in their blood and many had bronchial troubles. In fact it was rated as one of the ten most polluted cities in the world by the Blacksmith Institute
, a New York-based environmental group"..
A gradual improvement of the conditions have not yet been confirmed by any independent Institution. Doe Run has reported reductions in river pollution and lead, arsenic and cadmium emissions. Sulfur dioxide emissions will have been reduced by the recent commissioning of the lead smelter acid plant and should be under control when the acid plant for the new copper smelter starts up in October 2008, according to the company's official statement. Doe Run has been indemnified by Centromin (and guaranteed by the Peruvian Government) against any environmental liability arising out of Centromin's prior operations. In May 2006 Doe Run received its fourth extension to reduce toxic emissions and now has until 2009 to meet its targets. However, emissions are still well above limits set by the World Health Organization
and the Peruvian government.
In October 2009 Doe Run still refuses to fulfill licensing requirements and orders forcing Peruvian authorities to grant another 30 months adjournment.
, lead has lost many of its traditional markets such as paint
, solder
, tetraethyl lead (an additive to petrol/gasoline) and piping
. On the other hand it remains in strong demand for lead acid storage batteries which have been the dominant technology for automotive and other starting, lighting and ignition batteries as well as for motive power
, telecommunication
, network power, uninterruptible power systems and emergency lighting
. By the early 2000s, the total demand for lead in all types of lead-acid storage batteries represented 88% of apparent U.S. lead consumption.
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
producer in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and the largest primary lead producer in the western world. It owns two primary lead smelters (only one is active), five mills (four of which are active), several mines, the world's largest secondary lead smelter, all in southeast Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
, USA, a polymetallic smelter at La Oroya
La Oroya
La Oroya is a city of about 33,000 people on the River Mantaro in central Peru. It is situated on the Altiplano some 176 km east-north-east of the national capital, Lima, and is capital of the Yauli Province...
and copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
mine at Cobriza, both in Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, and lead fabricating facilities in Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
and Washington. It is wholly owned by the Renco Group
Renco Group
Renco Group is a New York City-based holding company controlled by Ira Rennert that invests in other companies across a range of industries.-History:...
which is in turn wholly owned by family trusts established by the company's Chairman and CEO, Ira Rennert
Ira Rennert
Ira Leon Rennert is a American investor and businessman. Using junk bonds to finance his acquisitions of companies, often in bankruptcy, Rennert has amassed significant holdings in basic, cyclical industries, such as mining and metals, including lead smelters, coal mines, magnesium producers and...
. Total primary production in 2005 was 376,200 metric tons of lead, equivalent to 11.5% of world production that year. Doe Run also produced 123,800 metric tons of secondary lead and smaller tonnages of zinc
Zinc
Zinc , or spelter , is a metallic chemical element; it has the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. Zinc is, in some respects, chemically similar to magnesium, because its ion is of similar size and its only common oxidation state is +2...
and copper in concentrate.
Background
Doe Run started life in 1864 as the St. Joseph Lead CompanySt. Joe Minerals
St. Joe Minerals Corporation was the United States largest producer of lead and zinc when it merged with Fluor Corporation in 1981.St. Joe was founded at the St. Joseph Lead Company on March 25, 1864 by Lyman W. Gilbert, John E. Wylie, Edmund I. Wade, Wilmot Williams, James L. Dunham and James L....
, better known as St. Joe, which started lead mining on a small scale in southeastern Missouri. Despite the isolation and hardships of those days it prospered and in 1892 it started up its smelter in Herculaneum
Herculaneum
Herculaneum was an ancient Roman town destroyed by volcanic pyroclastic flows in AD 79, located in the territory of the current commune of Ercolano, in the Italian region of Campania in the shadow of Mt...
, where all smelting was consolidated in 1920. It was active elsewhere and eventually owned mines (now disposed of) in South America and zinc operations in New York State, USA. It also built up a portfolio of gold mines and prospects, including Chile's
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
largest gold mine, El Indio
El Indio Gold Belt
The El Indio Gold Belt is a mineral rich region spanning the border between Chile and Argentina that contains large quantities of gold, silver and copper. On both sides of the border the belt is located within the Andes....
, which became St. Joe Gold. It was sold in the 1980s and is now part of Barrick Gold
Barrick Gold
Barrick Gold Corporation is the largest pure gold mining company in the world, with its headquarters in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; and four regional business units located in Australia, Africa, North America and South America...
.
With the gradual exhaustion of the Old Lead Belt after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, St. Joe and others explored other areas in southeastern Missouri and found more lead/zinc deposits, including the extensive Viburnum Trend on which Doe Run's U.S. mining operations are now concentrated.
In 1981, St. Joe was acquired by the Fluor Corporation. In 1986 St. Joe and Homestake Lead formed a short lived partnership called the Doe Run Company which brought Homestake's Buick mine, mill and smelter into St. Joe. After dissolution
Dissolution
Dissolution or dissolve may refer to:* Dissolution , in law, means to end a legal entity or agreement such as a marriage, adoption, or corporation...
of the partnership, St. Joe converted the Buick smelter for lead recycling, which grew to be the biggest single site facility in the world. In 1994 the Renco Group
Renco Group
Renco Group is a New York City-based holding company controlled by Ira Rennert that invests in other companies across a range of industries.-History:...
acquired St. Joe from Fluor and renamed the company the Doe Run Resources Corporation, registered to do business as the Doe Run Company.
In 1994 Doe Run acquired lead fabricating facilities and in 1997 it more than doubled in size with the purchase of the La Oroya smelter and Cobriza copper mine in Peru. 1998 saw the acquisition of ASARCO's Missouri Lead Division and its two mines and mills.
Operations in the United States
Doe Run's U.S. mines are all on the Viburnum Trend, a 64 km long mineralized shoot with an average width of 150 meters, thickness of 3 to 30 meters and average depth of 300 meters. It is a classic Mississippi Valley type lead/zinc deposit in CambrianCambrian
The Cambrian is the first geological period of the Paleozoic Era, lasting from Mya ; it is succeeded by the Ordovician. Its subdivisions, and indeed its base, are somewhat in flux. The period was established by Adam Sedgwick, who named it after Cambria, the Latin name for Wales, where Britain's...
carbonate
Carbonate
In chemistry, a carbonate is a salt of carbonic acid, characterized by the presence of the carbonate ion, . The name may also mean an ester of carbonic acid, an organic compound containing the carbonate group C2....
rocks though it contains an unusually high proportion of lead.
The principal minerals are galena
Galena
Galena is the natural mineral form of lead sulfide. It is the most important lead ore mineral.Galena is one of the most abundant and widely distributed sulfide minerals. It crystallizes in the cubic crystal system often showing octahedral forms...
(lead, PbS) and sphalerite
Sphalerite
Sphalerite is a mineral that is the chief ore of zinc. It consists largely of zinc sulfide in crystalline form but almost always contains variable iron. When iron content is high it is an opaque black variety, marmatite. It is usually found in association with galena, pyrite, and other sulfides...
(zinc, ZnS) with lesser amounts of chalcopyrite
Chalcopyrite
Chalcopyrite is a copper iron sulfide mineral that crystallizes in the tetragonal system. It has the chemical composition CuFeS2. It has a brassy to golden yellow color and a hardness of 3.5 to 4 on the Mohs scale. Its streak is diagnostic as green tinged black.On exposure to air, chalcopyrite...
(copper, CuFeS2). At the end of October 2005, ore reserves were approximately 34 million proven and probable tons at average grades of 6.23% lead, 1.36% zinc and 0.26% copper.
As of end October 2006, the company had six production shafts feeding four mills with a combined capacity of 21,000 metric tons per day which produced 255,600 metric tons of lead in concentrate plus zinc and copper byproducts. This was transported by public road to the primary lead smelter at Herculaneum, 56 km (34.8 mi) south of St Louis. It has a capacity of 227,000 metric tons of lead annually but is limited by permit to 181,500 metric tons. 2006 production was 140,300 metric tons of primary lead. The balance of the lead concentrates plus the zinc and copper concentrates were sold to other smelters One shaft, mill and smelter (Glover) were not in operation..
The recycling smelter at Boss
Boss, Missouri
Boss is an unincorporated community in eastern Dent County, Missouri, United States. It is located about 18 miles east of Salem on Route 32....
, Missouri, handles old batteries, scrap lead and lead-bearing hazardous waste. It is permitted to produce 152,410 metric tons of lead annually and in 2005 produced only 123,800 metric tons of secondary lead due to a tight scrap market. Fabricated Products produces value-added lead products such as lead oxide
Lead oxide
Lead oxide may refer to:* Lead oxide, PbO, litharge, massicot* Lead oxide, Pb3O4, minium, red lead* Lead dioxide , PbO2Less common lead oxides are:* Lead oxide, Pb2O3, lead sesquioxide...
, lead sheet and lead pipes at facilities in Arizona and Washington.
Pollution at the U.S. operations
Doe Run has been cited regularly by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for infringing emission limits, contaminating roads and generally polluting the immediate vicinity of the smelter. Exceeding of emission limits has resulted in the reduction of the permitted capacity of the Herculaneum smelter. Road contamination has resulted in orders to clean up certain roads and to wash down vehicles before they go onto public roads. The company has also been ordered by the EPA to address issues relating to elevated lead blood levelsBlood lead level
Blood lead level , is a measure of lead in the body. It is measured in micrograms of lead per deciliter of blood ; 10 µg/dL is equivalent to 0.48 micromoles per liter ....
in the community and lead in community soils adjacent to the smelter. It has also spent US$10.4 million on buying up to 160 residential properties close to the smelter that are contaminated and is to clean up contaminated soils. The company has paid for research developing an electro- chemical replacement, Flubor
Tetrafluoroborate
Tetrafluoroborate is the anion BF4−. This tetrahedral species is isoelectronic with tetrafluoromethane, CF4 and tetrafluoroammonium NF4+, and is valence isoelectronic with many stable and important species including the closely related anion perchlorate, ClO4−...
for primary smelting of lead ore.
Operations in Peru
See entry on La OroyaLa Oroya
La Oroya is a city of about 33,000 people on the River Mantaro in central Peru. It is situated on the Altiplano some 176 km east-north-east of the national capital, Lima, and is capital of the Yauli Province...
for more details
Doe Run owns 99.97% of the La Oroya polymetallic smelter. It was established by the American Cerro de Pasco Corporation in 1922, was nationalized and became the property of Centromin in 1974 and was then privatized in 1997 when Doe Run bought it for US$247 million. It consists of a copper and lead smelter and zinc refinery
Zinc refining
Zinc refining is the process of purifying zinc to super high grade zinc, which is at least 99.995% pure. This process isn't usually required when smelting zinc through electrolysis processes, but is needed when zinc is produced by pyrometallurgical processes, because it is only 98.5% pure.There...
. These are closely integrated and have additional circuits to recover byproducts, particularly from the 'dirty concentrates' produced by a number of local mines They include gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
and silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
(mainly from refinery residues), antimony
Antimony
Antimony is a toxic chemical element with the symbol Sb and an atomic number of 51. A lustrous grey metalloid, it is found in nature mainly as the sulfide mineral stibnite...
, arsenic trioxide
Arsenic trioxide
Arsenic trioxide is the inorganic compound with the formula As2O3. This commercially important oxide of arsenic is the main precursor to other arsenic compounds, including organoarsenic compounds. Approximately 50,000 tonnes are produced annually...
, bismuth
Bismuth
Bismuth is a chemical element with symbol Bi and atomic number 83. Bismuth, a trivalent poor metal, chemically resembles arsenic and antimony. Elemental bismuth may occur naturally uncombined, although its sulfide and oxide form important commercial ores. The free element is 86% as dense as lead...
, cadmium
Cadmium
Cadmium is a chemical element with the symbol Cd and atomic number 48. This soft, bluish-white metal is chemically similar to the two other stable metals in group 12, zinc and mercury. Similar to zinc, it prefers oxidation state +2 in most of its compounds and similar to mercury it shows a low...
, indium
Indium
Indium is a chemical element with the symbol In and atomic number 49. This rare, very soft, malleable and easily fusible post-transition metal is chemically similar to gallium and thallium, and shows the intermediate properties between these two...
, selenium
Selenium
Selenium is a chemical element with atomic number 34, chemical symbol Se, and an atomic mass of 78.96. It is a nonmetal, whose properties are intermediate between those of adjacent chalcogen elements sulfur and tellurium...
, tellurium, sulfuric acid
Sulfuric acid
Sulfuric acid is a strong mineral acid with the molecular formula . Its historical name is oil of vitriol. Pure sulfuric acid is a highly corrosive, colorless, viscous liquid. The salts of sulfuric acid are called sulfates...
and oleum
Oleum
Oleum , or fuming sulfuric acid refers to a solution of various compositions of sulfur trioxide in sulfuric acid or sometimes more specifically to disulfuric acid ....
. Production in 2006 was 48,600 metric tons of copper, 120,600 metric tons of lead, 45,000 metric tons of zinc, 34 million troy ounces (1,060 metric tons) of silver and 67,000 troy ounces (2,080 kilograms) of gold.
The company also owns the Cobriza copper mine, south of La Oroya, bought for US$7.5 million to ensure at least part of the concentrate supply to the smelter. It produced 16,244 metric tons of copper in concentrate in 2006 and had reserves of 6.5 million metric tons grading 1.2% copper.
Pollution at the Peruvian operations
When Doe Run took over La Oroya, it also took over Centromin's PAMA (Programa de Adecuación y Manejo Ambiental or Environmental Remediation and Management Program), an environmental contract requiring environmental remediation measures that were to be completed over the next ten years. In the event this was extended to twelve years, with Peruvian Government permission. Basically this program was to curb emissions of all types, gases, particulates and polluted water and clean up around the smelter and its waste dumps.Until 1997 the smelter had been run without any concern for the environment with the result that the hills around the smelter had been reduced to a moonscape by sulfur dioxide
Sulfur dioxide
Sulfur dioxide is the chemical compound with the formula . It is released by volcanoes and in various industrial processes. Since coal and petroleum often contain sulfur compounds, their combustion generates sulfur dioxide unless the sulfur compounds are removed before burning the fuel...
from the smelters; the already polluted river had been made even more polluted by untreated process water; the soil in the city and surroundings had become contaminated with lead; the people in the city, especially the young, had dangerous levels of lead in their blood and many had bronchial troubles. In fact it was rated as one of the ten most polluted cities in the world by the Blacksmith Institute
Blacksmith Institute
Founded in 1999, Blacksmith Institute is an international non-for-profit organization dedicated to eliminating life-threatening pollution in the developing world. Blacksmith identifies and cleans up the world's worst polluted places, focusing on communities where children are most at risk. Based in...
, a New York-based environmental group"..
A gradual improvement of the conditions have not yet been confirmed by any independent Institution. Doe Run has reported reductions in river pollution and lead, arsenic and cadmium emissions. Sulfur dioxide emissions will have been reduced by the recent commissioning of the lead smelter acid plant and should be under control when the acid plant for the new copper smelter starts up in October 2008, according to the company's official statement. Doe Run has been indemnified by Centromin (and guaranteed by the Peruvian Government) against any environmental liability arising out of Centromin's prior operations. In May 2006 Doe Run received its fourth extension to reduce toxic emissions and now has until 2009 to meet its targets. However, emissions are still well above limits set by the World Health Organization
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...
and the Peruvian government.
In October 2009 Doe Run still refuses to fulfill licensing requirements and orders forcing Peruvian authorities to grant another 30 months adjournment.
Lead usage
Because of its toxicityToxicity
Toxicity is the degree to which a substance can damage a living or non-living organisms. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect on a substructure of the organism, such as a cell or an organ , such as the liver...
, lead has lost many of its traditional markets such as paint
Lead paint
Lead paint or lead-based paint is paint containing lead, a heavy metal, that is used as pigment, with lead chromate and lead carbonate being the most common. Lead is also added to paint to speed drying, increase durability, retain a fresh appearance, and resist moisture that causes corrosion...
, solder
Solder
Solder is a fusible metal alloy used to join together metal workpieces and having a melting point below that of the workpiece.Soft solder is what is most often thought of when solder or soldering are mentioned and it typically has a melting range of . It is commonly used in electronics and...
, tetraethyl lead (an additive to petrol/gasoline) and piping
Water pipe
Water pipes are pipes or tubes, frequently made of polyvinyl chloride , ductile iron, steel, cast iron, polypropylene, polyethylene, or copper, that carry pressurized and treated fresh water to buildings , as well as inside the building.-History:For many centuries, lead was the favoured material...
. On the other hand it remains in strong demand for lead acid storage batteries which have been the dominant technology for automotive and other starting, lighting and ignition batteries as well as for motive power
Motive power
In thermodynamics, motive power is an agency, as water or steam, used to impart motion. Generally, motive power is defined as a natural agent, as water, steam, wind, electricity, etc., used to impart motion to machinery; a motor; a mover. The term may also define something, as a locomotive or a...
, telecommunication
Telecommunication
Telecommunication is the transmission of information over significant distances to communicate. In earlier times, telecommunications involved the use of visual signals, such as beacons, smoke signals, semaphore telegraphs, signal flags, and optical heliographs, or audio messages via coded...
, network power, uninterruptible power systems and emergency lighting
Emergency light
An emergency light is a battery-backed lighting device that comes on automatically when a building experiences a power outage. Emergency lights are standard in new commercial and high occupancy residential buildings, such as college dormitories...
. By the early 2000s, the total demand for lead in all types of lead-acid storage batteries represented 88% of apparent U.S. lead consumption.