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ESS and recycling used batteries [November Free Report]

by Rethabile Makatla | 01-12-2022 05:40 recommendations 0

As a key energy storage technology, batteries are important for incorporating higher amounts of wind and solar power on the grid. Lithium-ion batteries aren¡¯t the only kind of grid-scale batteries, but they account for the majority. The reason for Li-ion battery storage dominance is that they are lightweight and have high energy density (energy stored per unit of volume or mass).

There is not a single type of Li-ion battery, though. There are plenty oh them. They may be comprised of a variety of chemistries, which is one of the challenges that comes with recycling them through varying stages. The commonality is that all Li-ion batteries transfer lithium-ions between their electrodes when charging or discharging. 

As the chemistries continue to evolve with increased research for efficiency, so too must the consideration for streamlining their makeup to facilitate end-of-use recycling. Lead-acid batteries, such as those found in combustion engine vehicles, have a better established and largely efficient circular market. I'm Lesotho, these lead-acid batteries have up to a 99 percent recycling rate. There are two main reasons behind this.

First, the components are easy to separate and recycle. For example, lead is indefinitely recyclable without losing its quality and therefore value. Second, there is an established recycling market, where car battery recycling is often included in the upfront cost of a consumer buying a vehicle. At the battery¡¯s end-of-use, customers are refunded for returning used batteries to dealers or other sites.


With Li-ion batteries, the amount of recycling is limited, because these same two conditions do not apply, at least not yet.
 

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2 Comments

  • Junghyun Mentor Yoon says :
    Hi, Rethabile Makatla!
    This is your mentor, Yoon.

    You did well in describing lithium-ion batteries and lead-acid batteries. It is great to know that lead-acid batteries are cycled upto 99 percent in Lesotho.

    Great job on writing the free report.
    I am looking forward to reading your following report!
    Posted 08-12-2022 16:01

Minkyung Mentor

  • Minkyung Mentor says :
    Hello, this is your mentor Minkyung.

    Thank you for sharing your knowledge on recycling used batteries. I've also heard that recycling Li-ion batteries is not a commonly used practice yet, but I hope that technology keeps developing so that we can utilize batteries and ESS in a much more eco-friendly way.

    Great job writing November free report :)
    Posted 07-12-2022 20:46

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