The higher the proportion of electric cars, the more batteries are potentially available for recycling. A team led by industrial chemist Stephan von Delft has researched when supply and demand for recyclable battery raw materials will be equal. Michael Marais on Unsplash
The higher the proportion of electric cars, the more batteries are potentially available for recycling. A team led by industrial chemist Stephan von Delft has researched when supply and demand for recyclable battery raw materials will be equal. Michael Marais on Unsplash - China covers its demand for lithium, cobalt and nickel for batteries by recycling, ahead of Europe and the USA. With the increasing production of batteries for electric vehicles, the demand for the necessary raw materials is also rising. In view of the supply risks, environmental problems and precarious working conditions associated with the extraction and transportation of these raw materials, the recycling of battery materials has become an important topic in science, politics and industry. A team of researchers from science and the automotive and battery industry led by industrial chemist Stephan von Delft from the University of Münster has therefore investigated the question of when the demand for the three most important battery raw materials lithium, cobalt and nickel in Europe, the USA and China can be completely covered by recycling, i.e. when a complete circular economy will be possible in these regions. The conclusion: China will be the first to achieve this, followed by Europe and the USA.
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