Economic and Environmental Feasibility of Second-Life Lithium-Ion Batteries as Fast-Charging Energy Storage

Abstract

Energy storage can reduce peak power consumption from the electricity grid and therefore the cost for fast-charging electric vehicles (EVs). It can also enable EV charging in areas where grid limitations would otherwise preclude it. To address both the need for a fast-charging infrastructure as well as management of end-of-life EV batteries, second-life battery (SLB)-based energy storage is proposed for EV fast-charging systems. The electricity grid-based fast-charging configuration was compared to lithium-ion SLB-based configurations in terms of economic cost and life cycle environmental impact in five U.S. cities. Compared to using new batteries, SLB reduced the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) by 12–41% and the global warming potential (GWP) by 7–77%. Photovoltaics along with SLB reduced the use of grid electricity and provided higher GWP and cumulative energy demand (CED) reduction compared to only using SLB. The LCOE of the SLB-based configurations was sensitive to SLB cost, lifetime, efficiency, and discount rate, whereas the GWP and CED were affected by SLB lifetime, efficiency, and the required enclosure materials. Solar insolation and electricity pricing structures were key in determining the configuration, which was economically and environmentally suitable for a location.

Future material demand for automotive lithium-based batteries

“…EoL EV batteries may experience a second-use for less demanding applications (non-automotive), such as stationary energy storage, as they often have remaining capacities of around 70-80% of their original capacity 70,71 . Technical barriers exist (e.g., the performance of repurposed batteries) and economic uncertainty (the cost of repurposing including disassembly, testing, and repackaging) that depend on the battery chemistry, state-of-health, and the intended second-use application 72,73 . Here we distinguish the second-use rates of LFP and other chemistries due to the long cycle life 20 and the reduced chance of cascading failure of LFP 74 .…”

Probing the charged state of layered positive electrodes in sodium-ion batteries: reaction pathways, stability and opportunities

“…[2][3][4] When considering large scale stationary energy storage, emphasis is placed on cost, accessibility and abundance of resources, in addition to the battery lifetime and hence electrode-level structural stability. [5][6][7] As such, sodium-ion batteries, which can behave similarly to lithium-ion batteries, are a promising candidate. 8 Sodium is uniformly distributed across the earth and is the fourth most abundant element, which presents an opportunity to signicantly reduce the cost of positive electrode materials.…”

Second life and recycling: Energy and environmental sustainability perspectives for high-performance lithium-ion batteries

“…Existing literature on cascaded use (first use and second use) of LIBs focused on their technical and economic feasibility, as well as economic impacts on the global EV market (14,16,17). Previous life cycle assessment (LCA) studies on second life applications of LIBs mainly focused on only one type of battery chemistry [lithium iron phosphate (LFP), lithium manganese oxide (LMO), or LMO/lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC)] (12,(18)(19)(20)(21)(22)(23). While multiple battery chemistries were considered by few studies (12,24,25), their environmental implications have not been explicitly investigated.…”

“…Previous life cycle assessment (LCA) studies on second life applications of LIBs mainly focused on only one type of battery chemistry [lithium iron phosphate (LFP), lithium manganese oxide (LMO), or LMO/lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC)] (12,(18)(19)(20)(21)(22)(23). While multiple battery chemistries were considered by few studies (12,24,25), their environmental implications have not been explicitly investigated. Another less desirable strategy for retired LIB management integrates recycling, energy recovery, and disposal.…”