Cobalt-free battery now in test phase: a major milestone for the COBRA project

In the first week of June, several COBRA partners came together in Catalonia to carry out the End-of-Line testing of two complete battery pack prototypes. This marked a major milestone for the project that is developing cobalt-free electric vehicle (EV) battery packs. From this baseline, subsequent generations (Gen1, Gen2, GenX) will be developed from treated recycled active materials to the full battery pack – with improved performance.

Partners present at commissioning week: AVL, Eurecat, Aentron, IREC, Applus+ IDIADA, Bax & Company, and Millor Battery

The battery commissioning

After Millor Battery had assembled the battery pack, preliminary calibration and testing were performed. Subsequent testing procedures were completed at the nearby Eurecat facilities. Overall, the performed tests included:

IVT-S current sensor calibration
Installation of the BCU
Low voltage commissioning
High voltage connection test
BCU calibration

Firstly, at the Millor Batteries facilities, preliminary tests were performed to determine the battery pack’s proper functioning (e.g. BMS, connections, and sensors). Since one of the module’s MCUs reported a non-functioning cell, module-level testing was performed using multimeters. Once the alternative testing was completed, all the elements were performing correctly.

If you’d like further details on the latest developments in COBRA, or want to reach out to one of the partners, contact cobra@baxcompany.com or visit our Twitter and LinkedIn channels.

LC-BAT-5 Cluster workshop on Si-Gr electrodes

Last week, the LC-BAT-5 Cluster hosted its first in-person workshop at the Ångstroem Laboratory in Uppsala, Sweden.

The goal of the two-day workshop, organised by the HYDRA project, was to establish best practices for Si-Gr electrode research and agree on common reporting standards so that data published by each of the LC-BAT-5 projects (COBRA, 3beLiEVe, SeNSE & HYDRA) can be reusable and interoperable.

A total of 50 people attended the workshop (25 in-person and 25 virtual) hailing from 19 institutes spanning research and industry, each representing one or more of the four LC-BAT-5 projects.

COBRA: IREC, Uppsala University, CIDETEC, Solvionic, and Resitec.
3beLiEVe: Customcells Holding Gmbh, CIC energiGUNE, AIT, Vianode, Topsoe, and Arkema.
SeNSE: Empa, MEET, FZJ, and Enwires.
HYDRA: SINTEF, Uppsala University, ICSI, Vinode, Vianode, UCL, Solvionic, and POLITO.

Each project led a session of 1.5 hours on a different topic related to electrode research.

SeNSE explored methods of electrode preparation, COBRA led the discussion on electrolyte composition, HYDRA explored electrochemical operating parameters and 3beLiEVe focused on cycling stability and capacity fade mitigation.

The LC-BAT-5 Cluster was formed in 2020 to take advantage of synergies in communication, dissemination and technical matters. Together we are working on next-generation lithium-ion batteries made in Europe.

To receive updates from the LC-BAT-5 cluster, sign up for the newsletter.

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The Reverse Logistics of Li-ion Electric Vehicle Batteries

Li-ion batteries have gained a prominent position in the ongoing electrification of global transport. Here, retaining critical materials from used Li-ion batteries could be crucial to counter some of their negative externalities. Examples of retaining material value include battery reuse, remanufacturing, repurposing, and recycling. To support the value retention of Li-ion batteries, a safe and efficient reverse logistics chain is needed.

In the next decade, the number of returned electric vehicle batteries (EVBs) is expected to surge. By 2030 there will be 111,000 tonnes (or 25 GWh) of end-of-life EVBs in Europe, while almost 500 GWh of new batteries will be placed on the market. This means tens of thousands of heavy-duty trucks transporting end-of-life batteries a year, many of which transport them as dangerous goods.

With the EU’s focus on establishing the safest and most sustainable value chain for Li-ion batteries in the world, the surge in EV sales and society’s growing concern for sustainability, interest in the reverse logistics of Li-ion batteries is increasing. Public and private stakeholders are urged to create new regulations, business models and supporting technologies.

Reverse logistics is often overlooked, but essential in retrieving critical raw materials from EV batteries. Reverse logistics in the context of electric vehicle batteries (EVBs) start when the EV user decides that the battery is not fulfilling their needs and stop when the battery reaches the point where the remaining value is utilised, e.g., through recycling, repurposing or remanufacturing.

Due to the immaturity of EV battery recycling worldwide, reverse logistics remains very underdeveloped. Several regulatory, technical and economic challenges remain to be solved. In our latest market intelligence report, we’ve outlined the ongoing trends and current state of the reverse logistics of Lithium-ion batteries.

Special thanks to William Bergh, Founder of Cling systems and Philippe Jacques, Secretary-General of BEPA (The Batteries European Partnership Association) for their valuable contributions!

Want to get in touch with the COBRA team?
Contact cobra@baxcompany.com or visit our Twitter and LinkedIn channels.

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Ingolstadt International Lecture Series on Electric Mobility

Ingolstadt International Lecture Series on Electric Mobility
Developing a Cobalt-Free Lithium Ion Storage System

On February 3rd 2022, Dr. Yash Kotak and Christian Geisbauer of Technische Hochschule Ingolstadt (THI) will deliver a COBRA-themed lecture, as part of the Ingolstadt International Lecture Series on Electric Mobility.

The lecture will present COBRA in detail, covering the project’s overall goal of avoiding Cobalt while achieving an even higher energy density than existing technology, and outlining the developed concepts and prototype system.

The digital lecture series will be live-streamed to all of THI’s participating partner universities in Australia (RMIT, Melbourne), Brazil (UFPR and LACTEC, Curitiba) and India (Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur). The auditorium will consist of students, industry experts and mobility enthusiasts of all ages, and members of the general public are also welcome to join.

The free session will be held in English and via Zoom at 18:00 (CET) on February 3rd. The lecture is scheduled for around 30 minutes and a subsequent discussion with the audience will conclude the evening.

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A recap of our EU Green Week partner event: Developing the sustainable Li-ion batteries of the future

A recap of our EU Green Week partner event:
Developing the sustainable Li-ion batteries of the future

On the 2nd of June 2021, the LC-BAT-5 cluster hosted an EU Green Week partner event on “Developing the Sustainable Li-ion Batteries of the Future”. The session, organised by COBRA partner Bax & Company in collaboration with the HYDRA, SeNSE and 3beLiEVe projects, gathered a diverse group of experts to explore the sustainability of Li-ion batteries. The discussions mainly focused on environmental impact and how it can be minimised in the future to meet the increasing sustainability demands facing the electric vehicle (EV) industry and Europe’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The webinar began with three expert presentations followed by a panel discussion where four other professionals shared their perspectives on future challenges and improvements to reduce the impact of Li-ion batteries, taking into account the EV market as well as research and policy perspectives.

One of the main aims of the event was to highlight the work of the different LC-BAT-5 cluster projects related to Li-ion battery sustainability. Élise Monnier from CEA (representing HYDRA), kicked off the presentations by introducing the LCA methodology and its importance to offer a quantified methodology to support the sustainability discussion. The different steps in the value chain were introduced as well as their impact on the environment and how certain choices in one step of the value chain can have a positive or negative impact on the overall sustainability of Li-ion batteries.

Boschidar Ganev from AIT (representing 3beLiEVe), focused on the use phase of the battery and specifically discussed how this phase can be extended with different 2nd life applications. He explored the pros, cons and future challenges in widely establishing the 2nd use of batteries, comparing the reuse of the battery pack “as is”, to the reuse of the battery cells and other components.

The last presentation by Ruben Kühnel from Empa (representing SeNSE), shifted the focus towards the End-of-Life phase of the battery and more specifically on the recycling and recovery of materials from battery components, such as the cathode. He touched upon the potential of recycling cobalt and nickel while highlighting the importance of their recovery. Such recovered materials could replace the mining of virgin raw materials which is connected to negative social and environmental impacts, while at the same time, reducing the dependency of Europe on external value chains (as many of the raw material reserves exist only outside Europe).

The event was concluded with a panel discussion, exploring the perspectives of different battery experts from industry, policy and research:

Jan Tytgat (Director Government affairs EU-Benelux at Umicore)

Philippe Jacques (Managing Director at EMIRI and Secretary-General of the Batteries European Partnership)

Clémence Siret (Eco-Design Manager at SAFT)

Silvia Bodoardo (Associate Professor at Politecnico di Torino).

The panellists raised the most urgent problems that need to be addressed, as well as the necessary improvements to positively change the battery industry. This included the need for developing a standardised, comparable, and thoroughly defined LCA methodology, proper End-of-Life treatment of batteries – particularly recycling technologies to substitute virgin raw materials with recycled ones – as well as the need for robust regulations and due diligence on carbon footprint from battery manufacturing.

To learn more about the sustainability of Li-ion batteries, sign up to our mailing list and stay tuned for an in-depth follow-up article from some of the panellists and speakers!

If you have any questions, get in touch with the COBRA team at cobra@baxcompany.com.

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EU Green Week: Developing the sustainable Li-ion batteries of the future

EU Green Week partner event:
Developing the sustainable Li-ion batteries of the future

Join us on Wednesday June 2nd for our free workshop “Developing the sustainable Li-ion batteries of the future”, part of EU Green Week 2021.

WHERE: Online (Zoom)
WHEN: June 2nd 11:00 – 12:30 (CET)

Co-hosted by COBRA and the LC-BAT-5 cluster, the workshop will feature insights from battery experts as they discuss the sustainability of Li-ion batteries, considering their entire life cycle through different steps of the value chain.

In the first half of the session, experts will present their work on various aspects related to Li-ion sustainability, and the impact this might have. These presentations will be complemented by a panel discussion where future improvements will be explored from the perspectives of research, industry and policy.

Don’t miss it!

For more information on the event, contact cobra@baxcompany.com or visit our Twitter and LinkedIn channels.

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Register now for our ‘Batteries of the Future’ webinar

Register now for our 'Batteries of the Future' webinar

Join us on Tuesday 24th of November for our free webinar “Batteries of the future”. Co-hosted by COBRA and the LC BAT-5 cluster, the webinar will feature insights from experts specialised in Li-ion battery components, who will discuss the novel discoveries and the future of Li-ion technologies.

After introducing the R&I approach of the four cluster projects, the discussion will head towards the latest developments of cathodes, anodes, electrolytes, BMS, battery module and sensors, and cell production.

Our experts will approach each of these topics from different perspectives addressing future developments, the relevant research in the cluster projects, and sustainability concerns, while involving the audience in the discussion.