According to research, China may develop a circular economy for electric car batteries before the US and Europe do. According to them, China will be able to use recycling starting in 2059 to cover its own need for primary lithium, which is extracted through mining, for electric vehicles.
However, Europe and the US will not achieve this achievement until beyond 2070, the experts from the University of Mnster, Germany, claimed. They performed an analysis to determine when a fully circular economy would be feasible in this segment in Europe, the US, and China, as well as when the demand for the three most significant raw materials for batteries—lithium, cobalt, and nickel—could be satisfied totally through recycling.
The journal Resources Conservation and Recycling is where the research team published its findings. In terms of cobalt, the researchers discovered that while recycling would not be feasible in Europe or the US until 2052 or 2056, respectively, China could meet its needs for the metal after 2045, at the latest.
Furthermore, the researchers projected that China would be able to cover its nickel needs through recycling in 2046, followed by Europe in 2058 and the US starting in 2064. The team employed market projections and data from ongoing research projects to analyze changes in battery sales and production as well as the corresponding need for raw materials.
After that, they ran a dynamic material flow study to estimate the amount of recyclable raw materials that will be needed in the future as well as future demand. They noted that although earlier research has examined the availability of recycled raw materials for batteries and the market for them, it is still unclear whether “complete circularity” would be reached in these three areas.
Researchers and professor Stephan von Delft confirmed the possibility of these outcomes by stating, “Our research shows that, in particular, a faster rate of electrification in the automotive industry, as is currently being discussed in the EU, will play a role in the process. “The rationale is that enough batteries will be accessible for recycling in a timely manner the more quickly electric vehicles proliferate within the automobile industry.”
The study’s corresponding author and PhD candidate Jannis Wesselkmper continued, “The demand for raw materials could also be met much earlier by recycling as a result of a reduction in battery size and by avoiding a so-called ‘second life’ for batteries, for example as stationary storage units for solar power.”
