Portable solar powered electricity supplies using recovered batteries

105e5a76-ca49-42b1-acdd-8a8c6e4aa288

Closed

EPSRC
EPSRC
EPSRC
EPSRC
EPSRC

£381,720

June 30, 2016

June 30, 2017

Millions of functional rechargeable lithium ion batteries are disposed of each year. Some of these are recycled to recover
the materials they are made of, but this is expensive and the recovered value is low. A better, and more sustainable
approach, is to identify those batteries that have remaining functional lifetimes and to use them in new applications. This
project is developing a process whereby these end of life batteries can be recovered, rapidly tested, and integrated into
portable, low cost, lightweight, solar cell (or grid) rechargeable power supply units that can be used to charge mobile
phones and to power low energy lighting. There are around 600 million people globally with mobile phones that have no
access to electricity at home. To charge them, they often have to walk for many hours to charging stations to connect their
phones to car battery-based chargers; a privilege for which there are high charges. The power supply units developed in
this project will provide low cost energy for phone charging and low energy lighting applications, using a circular economic
approach to the reuse of lithium ion batteries.

Potential Impact:
This project addresses an enormous economic and humanitarian challenge: energy poverty. Around 1.3 billion people
(World Bank, 2011) do not have access to electricity worldwide, impacting quality of life and constituting a major barrier to
economic development of individuals, countries and society as a whole. The portable, low-cost power supply produced in
this project can deliver basic services such as charging mobile phones and powering electric lighting - key factors for
economic development. Owners of this technology can offer these services to others, thus generating value for their local
communities. At the core of the technological idea lies the concept of re-purposing waste batteries to create a new product.
Extending the useful life of a product and thus reducing the amount of waste and new raw materials required for production
are central values in a circular economy of goods. Building on their extensive experience in cost-benefit and life cycle
analysis, MTG Research and Valpak will establish a suitable business model to produce the proposed technology. They
will address the following factors with large potential impacts on financial feasibility: the supply networks of waste batteries,
processing routes to separate battery packs and identify which cells are still useful, optimisation of product design and
minimisation of the component count and cost for the power electronics. Moreover, legal issues will be addressed in the
context of "undeclaring" used batteries as waste to make them available for use in a new product.

The outcome of this feasibility study will be used to create a profitable business to produce and disseminate the
technology. The technology will provide economic benefits to both UK industry and end users. The power supply units are
anticipated to be produced in the UK. The UK's existing infrastructure for handling waste batteries will be the optimal
environment to test the business model. Companies like Valpak can pilot the circular economy business model, testing its
feasibility for extending battery life and reducing waste in this rapidly growing industry.
By addressing energy poverty while building on a circular economy of goods, this project has an immediate impact on both
people and environment alike. Ever growing demand for electronics boosts the production of high energy density Lithium
(Li)-ion batteries as well as associated waste streams (an estimated 40 million Li-ion cells are discarded p.a. in Europe). Liion
cells are generally assigned to pyrometallurgical recycling processes, which are highly energy intensive and only
recover a fraction of the materials used for production. Extending the useful life of Li-ion batteries in low-cost solar (or grid)
powered energy storage units can provide low income communities in developing countries with affordable electricity, while
reducing material waste and increasing production efficiency in the UK.
The project will also contribute to the training of researchers at a leading UK university by providing the opportunity to apply
their research to practical problems with high social and economic impact. Moreover, two UK companies will receive the
financial support required to explore entirely new business models with the potential to reduce material waste and extend
product life.