WVU researchers give electric vehicle batteries a second life

Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering chair Anurag Srivastava and Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering professor Debangsu Bhattacharyya are conducting research and development on the most effective technologies to reuse retired electric vehicle batteries in second-life applications (WVU Photo/J. Paige Nesbit).

Researchers at West Virginia University, in partnership with Parthian Battery Solutions, have been awarded $274,951 by the National Science Foundation to give electric vehicle batteries a second life in efforts to cut down on waste.

Story by Kaley LaQuea, Communications Specialist
Photos by J. Paige Nesbit, Communications Director

Benjamin M. Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources

Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering chair Anurag Srivastava and Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering professor Debangsu Bhattacharyya are conducting research and development on the most effective technologies to reuse retired electric vehicle batteries in second-life applications.

“I am greatly looking forward to the potential impact of the final results from this project,” said Srivastava. “This project addresses an essential aspect of battery technology by recycling energy left in the battery for another suitable application. We are sincerely grateful to the NSF for funding this significant and impactful endeavor." 

According to the Chemical Abstracts Service division of the American Chemical Society, only 5% of the world’s lithium-ion batteries are estimated to be recycled across the globe, with the projected 8 million tons of waste produced causing dramatic environmental and financial impacts. 

The initiative, led by local Morgantown business Parthian Battery Solutions run by WVU alumnus Auggie Chico, aims to apply machine learning principles alongside chemical engineering and electrical engineering by estimating battery health and predicting remaining charging and discharging cycles within the battery. WVU will receive $150,000 to support this Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) work.

“The second life use of the battery for stationary applications, such as for grid-level energy storage, requires accurate estimates of current state of charge and state of health as well as reasonably accurate estimates of remaining useful life,” said Bhattacharyya. “This project seeks to develop novel technologies to provide this critical information.”

According to a 2022 U.S. Geological Survey report on mineral commodities, lithium consumption increased over 280% between 2010 and 2021, largely due to lithium-ion batteries. In 2021, 74% of lithium was used for many different types of batteries, including for electronic devices, electric vehicles and energy storage. Lithium plays a critical role in clean energy technologies.

Electric vehicle batteries typically last 8-10 years. One CEO shared with Reuters that after 12 years of driving his Nissan Leaf, the car’s driving range had fallen to 40 miles from 120 miles when it was new. With more and more electric vehicles on the road today, demand for second-life batteries is expected to sharply increase over the next 5-10 years. 

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