A critical analysis of material demand and recycling options of electric vehicles in sustainable cities

Cities have a key role in climate change, as they are responsible for 75 percent of global CO2 emissions - the transport and the buildings sector being among the largest contributors (UNEP, Cities and Climate Change, 2017). New mobility technologies in the transport sector such as electric vehicles (EV) can reduce these emissions substantially. However, a growing number of EV equipped with lithium-based traction batteries will most likely require large quantities of materials such as lithium. Associated with increasing amounts of EV batteries in use is the issue of handling obsolete batteries at the end of their lifetime. Recycling of End-of-Life-batteries is vital to cope with a rising demand for battery materials in terms of energy and resource savings as well as securing raw material supply. But, the recovery of valuable materials during battery recycling processes is a matter of costs. Here we assess the possibilities and conditions for lithium recycling from retired EV batteries in a prospective manner by applying dynamic material flow analysis to the global lithium cycle. In this regard, we also evaluate how potential trends in future raw material prices may impact lithium recycling. We found out that only with a strong price increase for primary lithium, the recovery of lithium from battery recycling processes will become competitive within the next ten years. This underlines the need for strategies to improve the cost-efficiency of lithium recycling. In this context, we discuss options to promote the profitability of lithium recycling from EV batteries, focusing on cities since there are incentives for an increasing use of EV such as emission reductions and infrastructures for a widespread adoption of electric mobility in urban traffic as well. Furthermore, cities provide opportunities for battery use beyond EV through the combined development of decentralized renewable energy sources and smart grids.