dc.description.abstract | The use of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) has rapidly increased recent years, mainly due to
the global adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). Continued growth is expected, which will
inevitably lead to a large amount of battery waste. Proper recycling is then required to
reinsert valuable raw materials to the value chain. Recycling of LIBs are normally initiated
by disassembly, followed by various mechanical and metallurgical treatments. Disassembly
is one of the most labour intensive steps when recycling LIBs. Considering the expected
growth, a fully automated disassembly process will be required. However, this represents a
non-negligible investment.
Determining the optimal disassembly level prior to recycling is a crucial step that must
be considered before investing in automated disassembly. Currently, most EV LIBs are
only disassembled to module level prior to recycling. Instead, disassembly to cell level
could produce greater purity material streams and less material to handle downstream. The
question is whether or not it is economic viable to carry out deeper robotic disassembly down
to cell level instead of stopping at module level. This study presents a techno-economic
assessment of a robotic module disassembly line, furnishing guidelines on the necessary
degree of automation in EV LIB disassembly. Different case study scenarios are proposed,
demonstrating that investments in a robotic module disassembly line could be profitable | |