Under the microscope: Circular battery production in the EU Research results to quantify future recycling rates and environmental impacts

A team of researchers from Technische Universität Braunschweig has analysed the recycling of lithium-ion batteries in the European Union. The results show that the required recycling targets of the EU Battery Regulation are very ambitious, depending on market developments, and therefore pose enormous challenges for the battery industry.

The European Union’s (EU) Battery Regulation, which comes into force in 2023, aims to establish a circular battery production chain and sets minimum targets for recycling and the use of recycled materials in new batteries. However, due to dynamic market developments, it is uncertain whether these targets can be met and whether meeting them will bring environmental benefits.

This is why TU researchers from the Institute of Automotive Management and Industrial Production and the Institute of Machine Tools and Production Technology jointly investigated circular battery production in the EU and its impact on material flows and the environment from a market perspective as part of the CircularLIB research training group. To this end, they combined a system-dynamic market model with process models for battery production and recycling in order to quantify the material flows and environmental impacts over time.

According to their analysis, the projected volume of used batteries will not be sufficient to meet the targets for recycled materials – simply because of the long life of batteries. They also found that production waste from battery manufacturing will be the main source of secondary materials until 2035, before significant quantities of end-of-life batteries become available. This can lead to conflicting incentives, as production waste is needed to meet legal targets, but also has a high environmental impact.

The scientists therefore emphasise the importance of the battery industry and science improving not only recycling but also production processes, including upstream material extraction and refining, to reduce environmental impact.