NREL considers secondary uses for electric vehicle batteries
The US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is working with industrial and academic partners to find ways of reusing batteries from electric vehicles.
According to NREL, possible secondary uses for lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries include residential and commercial electric power management, and power-grid stabilisation to help provide reliable electricity to users.
A further use could be for renewable energy system firming, which involves using batteries to make power provided to the grid by variable resources such as wind and solar energy more useable.
The project will begin with a comprehensive technical and economic analysis addressing all aspects of a battery’s lifecycle in search of the best second-use strategies, followed by a comprehensive test programme to verify findings, particularly battery lifetimes.
For the field test, researchers will deploy aged EV batteries at the University of California (UC), San Diego’s campus-wide electric power grid.
The results of the study will likely provide validated tools and data on battery life to industry for battery reuse; give recommendations for EV battery design and manufacturing practices; identify the necessary regulatory changes to encourage secondary battery use; and assess the economic benefit of second uses.
Register now to continue reading
Thanks for visiting The Engineer. You’ve now reached your monthly limit of news stories. Register for free to unlock unlimited access to all of our news coverage, as well as premium content including opinion, in-depth features and special reports.
Benefits of registering
-
In-depth insights and coverage of key emerging trends
-
Unrestricted access to special reports throughout the year
-
Daily technology news delivered straight to your inbox
Experts speculate over cause of Iberian power outages
I´m sure politicians will be thumping tables and demanding answers - while Professor Bell, as reported above, says ´wait for detailed professional...