DOE competition addresses what to do with billions of spent lithium-ion batteries

The International Energy Agency predicts an 800 percent increase in electric vehicles over the next decade. While electric vehicles are good for the environment, we haven’t yet found a way to recycle the vast numbers of lithium-ion batteries required to power these vehicles. The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) within DOE is looking to solve this problem by sponsoring the Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Prize.

Announced in January 2019, the aim of the Prize is to develop and demonstrate processes that, when scaled, have the potential to profitably capture 90% of all discarded or spent lithium-based batteries in the U.S. and re-introduce key materials into the supply chain. Now in its third phase, seven Phase II winning teams will implement pilot validation projects that demonstrate the impact of their solutions at scale. Four Phase III winning teams will share up to $2 million.