Battery pack net profit

Which battery pack is the most profitable?

Comparing commercial battery packs, the Tesla Model S emerges as the most profitable, having low disassembly costs and high revenues for its cobalt. In-country recycling is suggested, to lower emissions and transportation costs and secure the materials supply chain. Our model thus enables identification of strategies for recycling profitability.

Can a holistic techno-economic model improve battery recycling cost optimization?

We present a comprehensive, holistic techno-economic model as a framework to directly compare recycling locations and processes, providing a key tool for recycling cost optimization in an international battery recycling economy.

What is the net recycling profit per kg cells (nrpkg)?

The net recycling profit per kg cells (NRPkg, in $·kg -1) is composed of transportation costs (CT,kg), disassembly costs (CD,kg), recycling costs (CR,kg) and the revenue generated from the reselling of recovered materials from the cells (Rcell,kg) and packs (Rpack,kg) (Equation 1). All values are given per kg cells.

How much does it cost to ship a battery pack?

Based on quoted transportation costs for 8,000 tonnes cells (still in battery packs, Figure S3 A), shipping from the UK collection point to South Korea and China amounts to 1.24 $·kWh −1, to Belgium and the UK 0.39 $·kWh −1, and to the US 1.55 $·kWh −1.

What happens if battery recycling is unprofitable?

If recycling remains unprofitable, battery waste mountains could build up, which, if uncontrolled, bear a significant environmental and safety risk, as toxic chemicals could leak into the environment and landfill fires might occur (Winslow et al., 2018). Moreover, valuable materials that could be recovered and reused would simply be wasted.

What is the energy density of a battery pack?

For this study, a battery pack with an energy density of 240 Wh·kg-1 was assumed, with a design similar to the Tesla Model S NCA pack. Assessed battery chemistries include NCA, NMC622, NMC811, LMO and LFP. The system boundary of this study is illustrated in Figure S1.