From resource to recycling
E-mobility is no stranger to criticism – whether it is about ranges, charging infrastructure or CO2 emissions from vehicle manufacturing. Another aspect which is often the focus of attention is e-vehicles’ resource demand and the associated impacts – on water consumption in Latin America, for example. E-vehicle batteries contain substantial quantities of precious metals. Depending on the type of battery, they can contain 5-12 kg of cobalt and 4-15 kg of lithium, although some batteries already contain no cobalt at all. Clearly, from a social and environmental perspective, we need to look carefully at electromobility as well. That means analysing its resource demand and ensuring that it is met as sustainably as possible while fully utilising and expanding the opportunities for recycling. But let’s not forget that the rival product, namely the combustion engine, requires a vast amount of resources. So how does e-mobility compare, and what are the options for a resource supply that is sustainable in the long run? These questions are being addressed by researchers at the Oeko-Institut.
When investigating resource demand in the e-mobility sector, it is essential to look at the whole life cycle: from resource extraction to the production of lithium-ion batteries and, finally, recycling. The Oeko-Institut is working on this topic as part of the current EU-funded RE-SOURCING project. In a consortium with 11 other partners, coordinated by Vienna University of Economics and Business, the researchers are analysing the renewable energy, electronics and mobility sectors. “We are developing a roadmap that shows how the lithium-ion battery supply chain can become sustainable by 2050. We are looking at resource extraction, battery production and recycling, with a focus on lithium, cobalt, nickel and graphite,” says Dr Johannes Betz, a researcher in the Oeko-Institut’s Resources and Transport Division. “As the first step, we charted the as-is state, and we are now analysing examples of good practice.” In addition, the project team is examining standards and legal frameworks in these sectors. “RE-SOURCING is intended to assist policy-makers to develop the right strategies and effective measures. However, companies and civil society have a role to play as well – with regard to sustainable business practices, for example, or raising awareness of more sustainable resource extraction.”
Naturally, the operation of e-vehicles plays an important role in their sustainability performance as well. When it comes to reducing CO2 emissions, as the Oeko-Institut’s expert explains, they are slightly ahead of combustion engine vehicles. “Every reliable scientific study that uses current data shows that e-vehicles perform better here; that’s the bottom line. Granted, manufacturing an electric car produces more greenhouse gas emissions, but this is cancelled out once the car is on the road. What’s more, if you opt for e-mobility, you are helping to improve air quality because the emissions of air pollutants at the local level are much lower.”
Electric vs. combustion engine
When analysing e-mobility’s resource demand, one aspect is often overlooked: the fact that mobility powered by combustion engines also requires substantial resource inputs, mainly oil. In the study “Resource consumption of the passenger vehicle sector in Germany until 2035 – the impact of different drive systems”, commissioned by the German Environment Ministry, the Oeko-Institut, together with ifeu and T&E, conducted an initial evaluation of Germany’s passenger vehicle sector from a resource perspective until 2035. One scenario – which assumes a switch to 100% e-mobility by 2035 – shows the potential reduction in annual crude oil demand. “In this scenario, the annual crude oil demand is more or less halved,” says Johannes Betz. “This could also help to alleviate the numerous social and environmental problems associated with the extraction and use of oil.” The Oeko-Institut expert is referring, for example, to the contamination of vast land areas in Russia, the main provider of crude oil for Germany’s refineries, and the major environmental problems in the United States. “In Nigeria, too, oil production is creating problems on a massive scale – from accidents and fires caused by oil spills from tapped pipelines to the contamination of the Niger Delta. On top of that, most of the profits go to a tiny elite.”
The project team has also looked at metals such as lithium, cobalt and copper. “In our scenario, we assume that the peak in primary metal demand will be reached by 2035 at the latest,” says Dr Betz. “The share of recycled metal content from traction batteries will increase continuously, which means that the demand for primary inputs will fall. However, ambitious recycling targets are needed here.” In his view, there is no reason to be concerned that we will run out of the key materials for e-mobility in future. “Even if there were a tenfold increase in global demand for lithium by 2035, for example, this would still amount to less than 1% of the current known resources.” There is enough lithium available to meet demand, although temporary shortages caused by factors such as a lack of suppliers cannot be ruled out.
Batteries are the centrepiece of e-vehicles and play a vital role in ensuring their sustainability, so the question of what happens to the battery when the vehicle is scrapped is key. “In Europe, all the batteries that are collected are recycled and raw materials such as cobalt, nickel and copper are recovered,” says Dr Betz. “Unfortunately, with lithium, this still poses technical challenges, so in most cases, it is not being recycled yet.” From his perspective, there is also a lack of appropriate regulatory frameworks at present. “The current regulations look solely at mass and set a recycling target of 50%. But in the past, this was sometimes reached merely by handing in the battery housing for recycling.” Targets are therefore required to ensure that all components can be recovered whenever feasible with best available technology. The European Commission’s new Batteries Regulation, whose adoption is expected in mid-2022, can provide significant impetus here. “The European Commission is proposing to raise the targets for the total amount of the recycled mass while setting specific recycling targets for nickel, cobalt, copper and also lithium.” In addition, there will be provisions on the use of recycled content in new batteries. The definition of what genuinely counts as recycling is also important, says Dr Betz. “Currently, if the materials are subsequently used in road-building, this counts as recycling in many European countries.” It is also important to start thinking now about comprehensive recycling. “At present, there are still no major battery material flows, partly because the vehicles have a long lifespan. But if the number of e-vehicles increases significantly, that will change, of course.“
A comprehensive perspective on resource demand in e-mobility must also include the issue of re-use. The option of exporting scrap e-vehicles and batteries to countries of the Global South is already being mooted. “If that happens, minimum criteria must apply, not only to the quality of the batteries but also as regards the question of who will be responsible for recycling further down the line. We cannot have a situation in which poor-quality goods are exported and the lithium-ion batteries then cause major problems at the local level, such as fires at waste dumps.”
Regardless of whether the issue is mining, production, use, re-use or recycling – as a rule, the best option, including from a resource perspective, is of course to manage without a car altogether, Dr Betz concludes. “Even then, of course, you can still enjoy the benefits of e-mobility – by using an e-bike, for example, or by taking an e-bus operated by the local transport company.”
On two wheels – or twelve
Anyone wishing to get on board with e-mobility has plenty of options nowadays. Electric vehicles come in all shapes and sizes: e-bikes, e-scooters, electric mopeds, electric cars in a range of vehicle classes, e-buses and even e-trucks (on this topic, see “Nine years to add 14 million” on page 10).
Two-wheeled e-mobility in particular is enjoying a surge in popularity here in Germany. In 2020, sales of e-bikes reached almost two million, up from half a million in 2015. E-scooters have seen substantial growth, especially in cities: in Berlin alone, there were around 11,000 on the road in 2019. However, as they are often used for short journeys that would otherwise be made on foot or by bike, they do not have the best reputation when it comes to sustainability. This is partly due to e-scooters’ generally short lifespans at present. However, they have the potential to contribute to more sustainable mobility if they remain in service for longer and replace car journeys. A broad range of e-mopeds is now available as well; this is another growth market.
Besides electric two-wheelers, larger vehicles with electric drives are also making headway. E-buses are just one example: their numbers more than doubled from 2019 to 2020. They still account for a very small proportion of local public transport – around 1.4 % – but further growth is expected.
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Chemist Dr Johannes Betz was awarded his PhD at the University of Münster’s MEET Battery Research Center in 2020 and joined the Oeko-Institut’s Resources and Transport Division the same year. He now works on electromobility, resource consumption and recycling management, plastics recycling, mining and raw material refining.