A circular economy for electric vehicle batteries: driving the change
| Published date | 26 August 2020 |
| Date | 26 August 2020 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JPPEL-02-2020-0011 |
| Pages | 235-250 |
| Author | Jyoti Ahuja,Louis Dawson,Robert Lee |
| Subject Matter | Property management & built environment,Building & construction,Building & construction law,Real estate & property,Property law |
A circular economy for electric
vehicle batteries: driving
the change
Jyoti Ahuja,Louis Dawson and Robert Lee
Department of Law, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK and
Faraday Institution, Quad One, Science and Innovation Campus, Didcot, UK
Abstract
Purpose –With the UK’s accelerating plans totransition to electric mobility, this paper aims to highlight
the need for policies to prepare for appropriate management of electric vehicle (EV) lithium-ion batteries
(LIBs) as they reachthe end of their life.
Design/methodology/approach –This is a regulatory reviewbased on projections of EV LIBs coming
off the market and associated problems of waste management together with the development of a
servitisationmodel.
Findings –Circular economyin EV LIBs is unlikely to shape itself because LIB recycling is challengingand
still in development. LIB volumes are insufficient for recycling to be currently profitable, and a circular
economy here will need to be drivenby regulatory intervention. Ignoring the problem carries potentiallyhigh
environmental and health costs. This paperoffers potential solutions through new EV ownership models to
facilitatea circular economy.
Research limitations/implications –The authors suggest a new EV ownership model. However, despite
environmental benefits, re-shaping the fundamentals of market economies can have disruptive effects on current
markets. Therefore, further exploration of this topic is needed. Also, the data presented is based on future projections
of EV markets, battery lifespan, etc., which are uncertain at present. These are to be taken as estimates only.
Originality/value –The paper proposes regulatory interventions or incentives to fundamentallychange
consumer ideas of property ownership for EVs, so that EV automotive batteries remain the property of the
manufacturereven when the consumer owns the car.
Keywords Circular economy, Battery leasing, Battery regulation, Circular economy in EV batteries,
EV policy, Lithium ion batteries
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
Global carbon dioxide (CO
2
) emissions have increased steadily in the past few decades,and
human fossil fuel consumptionis fundamentally linked to global warming (Zhao et al.,2019).
Further, fuels derived from petroleum that have been the main source of energy in the
transport sector (for example, for fuelling traditionalinternal combustion engine automobiles)
contribute significantly to air pollution, which is now recognised as the major global risk factor
for ill-health and death (Apte et al.,2017). T he recent emergence of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs),
© Jyoti Ahuja, Louis Dawson and Robert Lee. Published by Emerald Publishing Limited. This article
is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) licence. Anyone may reproduce,
distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-
commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full
terms of this licence may be seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode
Funding: This work was supported by the Faraday Institution [grant number FIRG005, FIRG006].
Electric vehicle
batteries
235
Received27 February 2020
Revised12 June 2020
Accepted15 June 2020
Journalof Property, Planning and
EnvironmentalLaw
Vol.12 No. 3, 2020
pp. 235-250
EmeraldPublishing Limited
2514-9407
DOI 10.1108/JPPEL-02-2020-0011
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
https://www.emerald.com/insight/2514-9407.htm
which are the main power source for electric and electronic equipment such as mobile phones
and are increasingly becoming the power source of electric vehicles (EVs), provides a
significant opportunity to decrease fossil fuel consumption and reduce pollution. The move to
electric mobility is now key to the global effort to tackle climate change. In the UK, the
government is committed, under the Paris Accord (Paris Agreement to the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change, 2015)andtheClimate Change Act, 2008 (s1(1)), to
reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80% of 1990 levels by 2050. The UK Government’s2018
Road to Zero strategy (Department of Transport, 2018) has committed to phasing out the sale
of all new petrol and diesel (internal combustion engine, or ICE) vehicles by 2040. The
Committee on Climate Change, however, now recommends that this deadline be brought
forward to 2035 to meet the target for road transport emissions to be near-zero by 2050
(Committee on Climate Change, 2019). Reports indicate that the Government plans to move this
deadline to 2035, and possibly even further forward to 2032 (Jolly, 2020). In 2019 the UK
Government set a new target that will require the UK to bring down all greenhouse gas
emissions to net zero by 2050 (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and
The Rt Hon Chris Skidmore, 2019).
Alongside the potential benefits of this transition, however, is a danger that some of the
environmental gains from the transition to electric mobility could be diluted if we do not
adequately plan for the sustainable andsafe management of EV batteries at the end of their
first life in an EV. Because of the power needed to propel an EV, these batteries will still
contain significant residual capacity (around 80% of their initial capacity, according to
current estimates) (Ahmadi et al., 2014, pp. 64–74) even after they are no longer able to
provide vehicle traction. In addition, LIBs also contain valuable and critical materials (such
as cobalt, lithium and nickel), many of which are at risk of supply shortfalls in the near
future. Extraction of some of these metalshas raised environmental and ethical concerns in
countries where they are mined(Hirst et al.,2018).
Circular economy goals demand that the residual power and valuable material
components remainingin the batteries when they reach the end of their firstlife in an EV are
used to the fullest possible extent before the battery is disposed of. A sustainable value
chain for EV batteries is one which reducesenvironmental impacts and avoids the depletion
of natural resources to maintain an environmental balance while promoting economic
growth (Hill et al., 2019, p. 119). A battery economy which has moved away from a
traditional linear (take, make, use and throw) supply model, to one which is fundamentally
circular (take, make, re-use/repurpose, recycle) will enable the battery economy to become
resource efficient, thus ensuring that maximum potential is harnessed from an EV battery
(see 3(a) below for further discussion of circular economy models in batteries). This paper
describes the current obstacles to a sustainable value chain for LIBs, and makes the case
that legal and policy interventions are necessary to steer the market in this direction. In
particular, it is suggestedthat rethinking notions of property and ownership of EVs, so as to
encourage the uptake of servitisationmodels for EV batteries, could contribute significantly
to achieving a circular economy and efficient end-of-life (EoL) management system for
batteries.
Recycling of LIBs is challenging for several reasons, including: the lack of standardisation of
LIB design and chemistry; recycling processes that are still in development; and inadequate
recycling infrastructure (discussed in 2(b) below). Furthermore, LIBs contain several hazardous
materials, and due to the high amounts of residual power contained in them, can be vulnerable
to explosions, fire and toxic gaseous emissions, especially if damaged. Thus, they also pose a
significant threat to human health and the environment if not managed or disposed of correctly.
JPPEL
12,3
236
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