Li-ion batteries good for EVs, bad for the environment

June 10, 2013 | By Barbara Vergetis Lundin

Lithium (Li-ion) batteries used to power plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles show great potential, but the Environmental Protection Agency says there are lots of areas for improvement -- specifically, reducing impacts to the environment and public health.

Credit: Oregon Department of Transportation

"While Li-ion batteries for electric vehicles are definitely a step in the right direction from traditional gasoline-fueled vehicles and nickel metal-hydride automotive batteries, some of the materials and methods used to manufacture them could be improved," said Jay Smith, Abt Associates senior analyst and co-lead of a cradle-to-grave life-cycle assessment for the EPA and DOE.

For example, the study revealed that batteries using cathodes with nickel and cobalt, as well as solvent-based electrode processing, show the highest potential for certain environmental and health impacts, including resource depletion, global warming, and ecological toxicity.

Among other findings, Shanika Amarakoon, an Abt associate and co-leader of the life-cycle assessment, said that global warming and other environmental and human health impacts were shown to be influenced by the electricity grids used to charge the batteries when driving the vehicles.

"These impacts are sensitive to local and regional grid mixes," Amarakoon said. "If the batteries in use are drawing power from the grids in the Midwest or South, much of the electricity will be coming from coal-fired plants. If it's in New England or California, the grids rely more on renewables and natural gas, which emit less greenhouse gases and other toxic pollutants."

For more:
- see the report

http://www.fierceenergy.com/story/li-ion-batteries-good-evs-bad-environment/2013-06-10