Dynamic estimation of end-of-life electric vehicle batteries in the EU-27 considering reuse, remanufacturing and recycling options

With the rapid promotion of electric vehicles (EV) in the European Union (EU), a new e-waste category is emerging, the lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). LIBs require proper management through circular economy business models. These include Remanufacturing, Reuse and Recycling of LIBs to extend their life before valuable ma-terials are recovered. Material and substance flow analysis with a 3-parameter Weibull distribution function are employed to quantify all battery waste flows and their embedded materials. The available LIBs for remanu-facturing will be 113-301 thousand (6-31 GWh) by 2024-2034, while the capacity of Second Life (2 L) LIBs will be 212-617 GWh by 2040. The available 2 L capacity in Germany and France could effectively cover the demand for energy storage for photovoltaic systems in these countries, which have the highest EV adoption in the EU-27. The recycled metals Li, Co, Ni and Cu could meet 5.2-11.3% of the demand for new materials considering the recycling efficiencies of the 2020 EU Battery Directive.