Robotic disassembly recycles and reuses EV battery packs

The expected boom in EVs raises questions around the recycling of the lithium-ion battery packs that power them. Now, engineers at the US Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have demonstrated that robots can accelerate disassembly and make the process safer for workers while increasing throughput.

A small percentage of lithium-ion vehicle batteries are currently recycled, and the majority of the processes used to do so are not automated, said Tim McIntyre, principal investigator in ORNL’s Electrification and Energy Infrastructures Division.

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Whether a recycler wants to get through the outer housing to access batteries and replace worn components, or completely recycle battery stacks for recovery of cobalt, lithium, metal foils and other materials, the first step is battery diagnostics for safe and efficient handling and disassembly.

“With our system, when the robot picks up the battery pack and puts it on the production line, it marks the last time a human will touch it until it’s in pieces and parts,” McIntyre said in a statement.