Addressing the Li-ion Dilemma: Disposing of Defunct Battery Cells in an Increasingly Electrified World

It is a well-known fact that burning fossil fuels affects our environment. Comprising not just carbon, these fuels also contain hydrogen, nitrogen, and sulfur. When burned, fossil fuel releases a mix of carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, and water, along with oxides of nitrogen and sulfur. These substances, particularly poisonous in high concentrations, pose serious threats to health and safety. Significantly, the emission of carbon dioxide is a major contributor to global warming, underscoring the environmental impact of fossil fuel combustion. 

The need to move away from fossil fuels has resulted in an exponentially surged demand for batteries. Reflecting this trend, the researchers project the global battery market size to grow from US$112 billion in 2021 to US$424 billion in 2030. The market encompasses several battery categories, such as lithium-ion, zinc-manganese dioxide, lead-acid, nickel-metal hydride, nickel-cadmium, sodium-sulfur, nickel-zinc, small sealed lead-acid, flow batteries, among others.

However, Lithium-ion and lead-acid batteries constitute the majority share of this battery market landscape, leaving the long tail for the other categories. 

If we look at the US$424 billion market size for 2023, more than US$257 billion, over 60% of the entire battery market, will be occupied by lithium-ion batteries. More than US$121 billion, 27% of the market, will be occupied by lead-acid batteries. These two categories together occupy more than 87% of the market, leaving nearly 13% for the rest of the categories to compete for. 

Where Are These Batteries Deployed?

The lithium-ion batteries are commonly found in most portable consumer electronic goods around us, including cell phones and laptops. They are also the primary choice for the majority of all-electric vehicles and PHEVs, which are gaining traction at a significantly fast pace.

Lead-acid batteries, on the other hand, are not as efficient as lithium-ion batteries. They have low specific energy, do not perform well in low-temperature conditions, and have a shorter life cycle. Their widespread use is mostly due to their low cost. However, there is the ongoing development of advanced lead-acid batteries – these days – for use in commercial electric-driven vehicles for ancillary loads.

Nickel-metal hydride batteries are used in computers and medical equipment and are also significant in hybrid electric vehicles. With the steady increase in the use of electronic goods and the consistent increase in the market share of electric vehicles, the usage of batteries is set to invariably increase.

These batteries, however, have a limited shelf-life and eventually need to be disposed of. This presents a challenge in an increasingly electrified world – the disposal of defunct battery cells. Solutions exist, but before exploring them further, it's crucial to examine the root cause more deeply.

Battery Shelf Life: A Brief Overview

Batteries may differ in their capacity, place of use, and material they're composed of. Each factor plays a role in how long a battery should last. The most popular category of batteries is lithium-ion. And electric vehicles are the usage category that deploys these batteries at a grand scale. 

The batteries that EVs use resemble the ones used in our mobiles and laptops. They have many advantages, including high energy per unit mass and volume compared to other electrical energy storage systems, high power-to-weight ratio, high energy efficiency, efficient high-temperature performance, long life, and low self-discharge. 

EV batteries leverage packs that consist of more than two thousand individual lithium-ion cells working together. Each battery pack is built with the capacity to retain its charging-discharging ability for up to anywhere between 100,000 and 200,000 miles. And when measured in years, most EV batteries come with a life expectancy of 15 to 20 years within the car.

The Risks of Disposing of Defunct Battery Cells

According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, most lithium-ion batteries would qualify as hazardous waste under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Once discarded, these batteries are often ignitable and reactive. Despite appearing to be completely discharged and disposable to the user, Li-ion batteries frequently retain significant charges, posing a hazard.

Furthermore, damaged and not fully sealed lithium batteries can be extremely dangerous if they come into contact with water during disposal. The significant metallic content in Li-ion batteries, which is difficult to eliminate and harmful to the environment, adds to the concern.

A scientific assessment report has highlighted that Li-ion batteries contain high concentrations of aluminum, cobalt, and copper. Additional studies reveal the hazardous nature of defunct Li-ion batteries due to their lead content (average 6.29 mg/L; σ = 11.1; limit 5). 

Under California regulations, the presence of excessive levels of cobalt (average 163,544 mg/kg; σ = 62,897; limit 8,000), copper (average 98,694 mg/kg; σ = 28,734; limit 2,500), and nickel (average 9,525 mg/kg; σ = 11,438; limit 2,000) qualifies all lithium batteries as hazardous.

Leached concentrations of chromium, lead, and thallium in these batteries also exceed California Regulation Limits. Apart from imparting toxicity to humans and the ecology around us, the Li-ion batteries also result in resource depletion, a grave concern faced by our future. 

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How to Recycle Defunct Battery Cells?

The dangers that disposal of defunct battery cells pose require recycling. However, recycling a defunct battery can be hazardous. Improper dealing with defunct battery cells can short-circuit, combust, and release toxic gases. 

The key lies in efficient recycling methods, which could not only prevent pollution but also produce opportunities to generate a sustainable secondary stream of critical materials. One such efficient method for lithium-ion battery recycling has been devised by researchers working at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Library. 

The solution involves soaking the spent battery in a solution of naturally occurring citric acid, organically present in citrus fruits. The citric acid solution is dissolved in ethylene glycol, and the mixture helps conduct a highly efficient separation and recovery process for separating metals from the cathode, the positively charged electrode of the battery. 

An efficient recovery process for the cathode means reduced battery costs since the cathode contributes to more than 30% of the battery cost, owing to its possession of critical materials. The recycling method could leach almost all of the cobalt and lithium from the cathode without turning the system impure. It can recover more than 96% of the cobalt in hours. There is no need to add more chemicals in an effort to manually balance acid levels. 

According to Lu Yu, the lead researcher in the project:

 “This is the first time one solution system has covered the functions of both leaching and recovery.”

Apart from such lab-based research efforts, which would be scaled to production in the future, several companies have already taken up the job of recycling defunct and disposed of lithium-ion batteries. We will have a look at some of them in the following segments. 

1. American Battery Technology Company

The American Battery Technology Company has come up with a closed-loop battery recycling process to separate and recover critical materials from batteries nearing the end of their usable life. However, their efforts do not stop at separation and recovery. 

The process involves purifying these battery metals to the same or higher quality specifications. According to the company, its system boasts multiple competitive advantages. Its strategic design ensures zero high-temperature operations and prevents air and liquid pollutant emissions. Furthermore, the recycling facilities match the throughput of manufacturing facilities, generating minimal waste and demanding low capital costs for setup.

The First Quarter of 2024 financial report, as published by the company, listed its key milestones toward revenue-generating operations. Notably, the company has designed, commissioned, and initiated operations at its first commercial-scale recycling facility, boasting a nominal throughput of 20,000 metric tonnes per year. 

The company also secured two U.S. DOE grants under contract and recently became eligible for two additional grants, totaling US$70 million in contracted federal dollars. It successfully listed its shares and commenced trading on Nasdaq on September 21st, 2023. 

At the time of writing, American Battery Technology Company's share price was $3.99 and had a market cap of over $188 million. 

2. Lithion Technologies

Lithion Technologies sustainably produce strategic materials from Li-ion batteries. Its technology is capable of recovering up to 95% of the components of these batteries. 

In mechanical extraction, Lithion can recuperate more than 98% of the minerals concentrate. The critical minerals concentrate is then processed through its patented hydrometallurgy technology. This process allows for the recovery of essential materials such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, graphite, and manganese. 

Remarkably, Lithion claims that its technologies result in a significantly smaller environmental impact compared to traditional mining extraction. Their GHG emissions are 75% less than those of mining extraction, and it further reduces water usage by an impressive 90%.

In April 2022, Lithion received $22.5 million dollars in funding from the Quebec government, including a 15 million equity investment in the company's capital stock through Investissement Québec and $7.5 million in grants from the Fonds d’électrification et de changements climatiques.

3. Ecobat

Ecobat operates through an extensive network of 65,000 collection points to manage end-of-life batteries as part of its recycling energy storage solutions. It has garnered nearly 15,000 members or customers so far, recycling 120 million batteries per year. 

For collection from the designated points, Ecobat has its own fleet of 100 vehicles. With 11 smelting facilities, it deals with lithium batteries, lead batteries, and other battery chemistries. Ecobat also has a closed-loop circular recovery process, where 80% of its recovery returns to battery manufacturing. It also promises a recyclability percentage of 99%. 

Ecobat claims itself to be the world's largest battery ‘recycler that meets essential energy storage needs by making the business of batteries safer and more sustainable for a circular energy economy.' In 2021, Ecobat's lead battery recycling business recycled 70 million car batteries fully.

4. Cirba Solutions

Cirba Solutions has 60 combined years of recycling experience with three brands – Battery Solutions, Heritage Battery Recycling, and Retriev Technologies under its ambit. It is one of the pioneers in lithium battery recycling with its own battery recycling team, battery-centric logistics, closed-loop lifecycle, and lithium processing facilities in place. 

The company has a specialized recycling process involving cross-chemistry solutions for both cobalt-based and non-cobalt-based constituents. To date, it has processed more than 36 million pounds of lithium-ion for over 30 years. 

According to the latest available data, Cirba raised US$50 million in its latest corporate round on February 9th, 2023. 

Disposing Defunt Battery Cells: The Future Scope

The presence of Lithium-ion batteries, essential to run electric vehicles and power modern-day consumer electronics, are only to become more and more ubiquitous. Statistically speaking, between 2022 and 2030, the global demand for lithium-ion batteries will increase nearly seven times, reaching 4.7 TWh in 2030. 

Production-wise, China has its command over more than three-fourths of the world's capacity. North America and Europe won't be behind for long, as they are eyeing a significant ramp-up in production, too. This is why consolidated and well-coordinated global efforts will be required to ensure that battery recycling becomes an accessible and sustainable process, and only then will we be able to save the world from pollution and resource depletion risks. 

China, for instance, holds car manufacturers responsible for the “end-of-life treatment” of vehicle batteries. The European Union is not far behind, as it has set standards for the collection and recovery of batteries as well. 

More and more innovations in second-life applications of these batteries will help avoid the imminent dangers of inefficient recycling. Let's end by looking at one such example. An energy storage system at Johan Cruijff Arena, Amsterdam, leverages the equivalent of 148 new and used Nissan LEAF batteries to capture energy from 4,200 solar panels and store up to 3 megawatts of power. This capture is enough to charge half a million iPhones for backup.

In conclusion, meeting the goals at a global scale requires active participation of all. Automotive companies, consumer electronics manufacturers, global economic bodies, councils of nations – all will have to lend their voice to the sustainable and efficient recycling and recovery of defunct battery cells. 

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