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International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management
This paper aims to forecast the availability of used but operational electric vehicle (EV) batteries to integrate them into a circular economy concept of EVs'' end-of-life (EOL) phase. Since EVs currently on the roads will become obsolete after 2030, this study focuses on the 2030–2040 period and links future renewable electricity production with the potential for storing it into used EVs'' batteries. Even though battery capacity decreases by 80% or less, these batteries will remain operational and can still be seen as a valuable solution for storing peaks of renewable energy production beyond EV EOL.
Storing renewable electricity is gaining as much attention as increasing its production and share. However, storing it in new batteries can be expensive as well as material and energy-intensive; therefore, existing capacities should be considered. The use of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) is among the most exciting concepts on how to achieve it. Since reduced battery capacity decreases car manufacturers'' interest in battery reuse and recycling is environmentally hazardous, these batteries should be integrated into the future electricity storage system. Extending the life cycle of batteries from EVs beyond the EV''s life cycle is identified as a potential solution for both BEVEOL and electricity storage.
Results revealed a rise of photovoltaic (PV) solar power plants and an increasing number of EVs EOL that will have to be considered. It was forecasted that 6.27–7.22% of electricity from PV systems in scenario A (if EV lifetime is predicted to be 20 years) and 18.82–21.68% of electricity from PV systems in scenario B (if EV lifetime is predicted to be 20 years) could be stored in batteries. Storing electricity in EV batteries beyond EV EOL would significantly decrease the need for raw materials, increase energy system and EV sustainability performance simultaneously and enable leaner and more efficient electricity production and distribution network.
Storing electricity in used batteries would significantly decrease the need for primary materials as well as optimizing lean and efficient electricity production network.
Obrecht, M., Singh, R. and Zorman, T. (2022), "Conceptualizing a new circular economy feature – storing renewable electricity in batteries beyond EV end-of-life: the case of Slovenia", International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, Vol. 71 No. 3, pp. 896-911. https://doi /10.1108/IJPPM-01-2021-0029
At the end of 2019, there were 4.79 million battery EVs in the world (Statista, 2020a), and their number is expected to rise above 250 million by 2030 (IEA, 2019). The average lifetime for a vehicle is assumed to be 150,000 km (without battery replacement). This is a typical glider that corresponds to ten years of life expectancy, which reasonably represents an actual European passenger vehicle (Samper-Naranjo, 2021; Dun et al., 2015). Since battery life is dependent primarily on charging cycles, it can be seen that EV batteries will still be operational after the EOL of EV. Therefore, there is enormous potential to seek energy storage possibilities beyond EV end-of-live.
Due to composite materials and battery structure, batteries are incredibly complex and expensive to recycle (especially lithium extraction) (Hočevar, 2017). Remanufacture is also problematic, and due to hazardous materials and metal compounds, they are inappropriate for energy recovery. Therefore, relating used but operational batteries from used EV after the end of their life cycle is a viable solution that enhances circular economy strategy R3 – reuse (increasing lifespan of products or their parts) (Kirchherr et al., 2017).
Nowadays, it is hard to imagine a world without batteries. However, the first batteries based on a zinc rod negative electrode were made in the late 19th century. Not long after that, the widely known lithium battery came into existence (Scrosati, 2011).
Lithium-ion batteries are emerging as top competitor technology because of their higher power and energy density than lead-acid or nickel-metal hydride chemistries. Because of these features, they are the most used in EV manufacturing. However, the current recycling infrastructure for strategic metals is limited, despite projections that millions of EV will hit the road and all-time high EV sales. One of the leading EV manufacturers, Tesla sold over 145,000 T''s Model 3 EV across the worlds, followed by Nissan LEAF, Tesla''s Model S and Model X (Statista, 2020b). No matter that lithium batteries'' EOL recycling has not yet fully developed. Recycling rates are globally meager, and the motivation of benefiting from the waste has yet to come (Wang et al., 2014; Leon, 2020).
Data for the research were gathered from viable sources and special databases related to researching EV and EV batteries EOL such as Web of Science, Scopus, Science direct as well as statistical databases SURS, Eurostat, Statista and PV portal reviewing journals not included in these databases. The focus was on papers published from 2014 on. The study was made as a case study based on data for registered EV and solar PV installed in Slovenia.
The information regarding solar panels was gathered from yearly based reports about the installation of PV panels in Slovenia. The solar panels'' overall power produced over the years was determined by the power from solar PV systems at the end of each year, divided by the number of existing PV systems across the country. PV systems are used to define the solar PV power plant. Solar PV system average power is considered for electricity production calculations by 1 kWp within one year in optimal weather conditions. Available data of existing PV systems in Slovenia were used for the forecast of future state.
An impartial assessment of the above methodology would clearly show that the methodology used in this paper is simple and straightforward yet captures sufficient details for making a reasonable long-term forecast. Though more levels of details can be added to develop a more sophisticated model, the present methodology is aimed at producing first-cut estimates for a long-term planning perspective.
First, looking into Slovenia''s sold EVs over the past years, most sold EVs in Slovenia are BMW i3, followed by Nissan Leaf and Renault Zoe, which have the highest market share (Božin, 2019; SiStat, 2020). Božin, 2019 as shown in Figure 1, the total number of registered EV in Slovenia was 2001 and relatively steady growth. In the forecast of available EV''s batteries for electricity storage, statistics on EVs sold from 2013 to 2019 were used to forecast EV batteries'' future availability beyond EV end-of-life. Due to the relatively small share of EV, the future number of EV in operation might be higher.
The interest in PV solar panels in Slovenia began to bloom in the first half of the decade throughout the past decade. After that, we can see coming to a stall in rising, as shown in Figure 1. From the latest information, the current number of solar panels across Slovenia is 8,038 with a combined power of 313,2 MW (PV portal, 2019).
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