Once an EV battery is no longer optimal for use in a vehicle, it doesn’t become useless. Much like “disposable” vapes, the batteries are still very much useful. If not for repurposing, then for resource recovery.
Is there a long way, and a lot of funding needed, for reuse/recycling of Lithium batteries? Fuckin rights. This isn’t just an EV issue though. Our modern life is largely powered by Lithium batteries, and we need to step up our game, globally, with reuse and recycling.
I agree but unless it’s affordable and effective I suspect its the same greenwash that plastic recycling has been. Will our grandkids have lithium in their bodies from all the dodgy lithium battery fires we’ll be seeing over the next 20 years?
Fair point. One thing that gives me hope is that the two startups I mentioned don’t seem to have direct connections with battery manufacturers or retailers.
The main issue with specifically plastic recycling is that it was brought into existence by the very companies pumping out millions of tonnes of plastic as an effort to put the guilt for the pollution on the consumer. And was started without an actually viable way of recycling said plastic.
Hopefully these efforts with batteries will get funding, and prove to be both cost effective and popular.
Look, I hope for the best. Lithium is a limited resource and we should be trying to reclaim as much as possible. But capitalism is a piece of shit engine that’ll take the cheapest method to make money and run with it regardless of the impact.
No, because these cheap EVs from China are essentially cheap because of slave-like forced labour.
And Canada will still have to dispose of them at the end of their working lifespan.
One Canadian startup is working on resource recovery and recycling.
Another is repurposing EoL EV batteries for residential and business BESS, Battery Energy Storage Systems. This link is an interview, so info is there, but more of a long read.
Once an EV battery is no longer optimal for use in a vehicle, it doesn’t become useless. Much like “disposable” vapes, the batteries are still very much useful. If not for repurposing, then for resource recovery.
Is there a long way, and a lot of funding needed, for reuse/recycling of Lithium batteries? Fuckin rights. This isn’t just an EV issue though. Our modern life is largely powered by Lithium batteries, and we need to step up our game, globally, with reuse and recycling.
I agree but unless it’s affordable and effective I suspect its the same greenwash that plastic recycling has been. Will our grandkids have lithium in their bodies from all the dodgy lithium battery fires we’ll be seeing over the next 20 years?
Fair point. One thing that gives me hope is that the two startups I mentioned don’t seem to have direct connections with battery manufacturers or retailers.
The main issue with specifically plastic recycling is that it was brought into existence by the very companies pumping out millions of tonnes of plastic as an effort to put the guilt for the pollution on the consumer. And was started without an actually viable way of recycling said plastic.
Hopefully these efforts with batteries will get funding, and prove to be both cost effective and popular.
Look, I hope for the best. Lithium is a limited resource and we should be trying to reclaim as much as possible. But capitalism is a piece of shit engine that’ll take the cheapest method to make money and run with it regardless of the impact.
Fuckin rights bud, absolutely agreed.
I’ll take all the battery packs you want to drop off with me. LiFePO4 batteries will still have 80% SOC left after 5-6000 charges.