New facility at University of Birmingham accelerates battery recycling research

Researchers working on the Faraday Institution ReLiB (Recycling and Reuse of Li-ion Batteries) project have completed the installation of new battery testing and storage facilities at the University of Birmingham. The new facilities will allow battery scientists and engineers to speed up their research to develop safe, economic and environmentally sound recycling routes that recover large volumes of valuable materials contained in batteries at the end of their first life. The aim is to help the UK's efforts to develop a circular economy around raw materials for batteries, ensure the country has sufficient capacity for the recycling of batteries for electric vehicles (EVs) as their usage increases, and provide UK-based businesses with a competitive advantage. The safe, controlled environment that the facility offers is an important additional national resource that will also be used by UK scientists in other Faraday Institution projects and beyond to safely perform destructive tests of EV batteries under controlled conditions. This will lead to a better understanding of how and why batteries fail and will allow the investigation of how damaged batteries can be safely recycled. The facility is European Council for Automotive R&D - EUCAR 7 rated, meaning impact, fire, and explosive battery failures can all be studied safely. There are only a handful of similar test chambers in the UK and their use is in high demand, which previously caused delays to research programmes.