EVs use twice as much copper as legacy vehicles, and smart phones, tablets and other popular consumer electronics are also consuming increasing amounts of the conductive metal. Growing demand and tight supply could soon lead to shortages of copper, nickel and other key minerals used in EV batteries. As Reuters reports, Sarah Maryssael, Tesla’s Global… Read more »
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Tesla developing new battery recycling process at Gigafactory
All forms of transport have environmental impacts, and the mainstream media is fond of speculating that those of EVs are just as bad as those of fossil fuel vehicles. Some facts and figures to rebut the croakers may be found in Tesla’s 2019 Impact Report, in which the company discloses the impacts of its products… Read more »
Fortum solution recycles 80% of Li-ion battery material
A new solution from Fortum, a Finnish clean-energy company, increases the amount of material in Li-ion batteries that can be recycled to more than 80%, according to the company. The current EU-mandated recycling rate is only 50% of the total weight of the battery. First the company makes the used batteries safe for mechanical treatment,… Read more »
DOE researchers identify cause of cathode degradation in nickel-rich materials
A team of scientists that includes researchers at the DOE’s Brookhaven National Lab and SLAC National Accelerator Lab has identified the causes of degradation in nickel-rich materials for lithium-ion battery cathodes, as well as possible remedies. Researchers at Brookhaven are part of a DOE-sponsored consortium called Battery500, a group that is working to triple the… Read more »
Battery metals see bigger gains in 2018 than EVs thanks to increasing battery capacity
In 2018, global deployment of nickel, graphite, copper, LCE, aluminum and cobalt by cell suppliers for passenger vehicles increased by 75% to 99% over the previous year, according to data from Adamas Intelligence’s EV Battery Capacity and Battery Metals Tracker. These growth rates are particularly remarkable considering that global EV registrations increased by just 67% over the… Read more »
American Manganese begins pilot of battery recycling plant
American Manganese is developing a recycling process for Li-ion batteries, and processing partner Kemetco Research has begun processing a sample of cathode scrap material at the company’s pilot plant. The pilot plant will operate in five stages: Pre-treatment of cathode material Leach of active material Purification Recovery of base metals (e.g., nickel, cobalt, manganese) Lithium… Read more »
Tesla and Jeff Dahn patent new battery cell chemistry
Tesla’s battery research group in Halifax, which is led by battery superstar Jeff Dahn, has applied for a patent on a new battery cell chemistry that promises to deliver faster charging, longer life and lower cost. In the application, entitled “Novel battery systems based on two-additive electrolyte systems,” Dahn and his team explain that adding… Read more »
Blackwater founder launches fund to invest in EV battery metal mining
Erik Prince, founder of the controversial private military company Blackwater, has launched a fund to invest in metals used in EV batteries, he told the Financial Times. The fund aims to raise up to $500 million, and will invest in deposits of metals such as cobalt, copper and lithium, largely in Africa and Asia. Prince… Read more »
Daimler and thysenkrupp partner to develop bipolar batteries
Under a project sponsored by the German Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, Daimler and the Fraunhofer Institute, together with German conglomerate thyssenkrupp and engineering firm IAV, are co-developing the design and production of bipolar batteries. Bipolar batteries are still in the laboratory stage and have not moved past pilot scale. The project, named EMBATT-goes-FAB,… Read more »
CAMX Power’s new GEMX cathode material
CAMX Power, an independent lithium-ion battery materials and design firm, has announced a new class of cathode materials that it says improves upon the high-nickel material classes NMC, NCA and LNO. The patented invention is called GEMX, and the resulting enhanced chemistries are called gNMC, gNCA and gLNO. High-nickel cathode chemistries for vehicle batteries use… Read more »