Axeon awarded funding to lead electric vehicle battery recycling research

The Axeon-led project, which looks into the economic viability of automotive battery recycling in the UK, involves Oxford Brookes University as a partner. It will define the context in which battery recycling must take place, including the legal issues, as well as develop the recycling process and work out the business model for recycling end-of-life batteries.

The project ultimately aims to develop a UK battery recycling industry for end-of-life automotive batteries, which is entirely non-existent at the moment. Axeon and Oxford Brookes University will seek to involve various organisations throughout the UK automotive supply chain in order to create a viable and sustainable business model for battery recycling.

Establishing a battery recycling industry will improve environmental efficiency, create jobs in the UK automotive supply chain, boost materials supply and ensure materials are dealt with safely. Axeon will also develop a thorough and statistically-robust process for determining when batteries have reached their end of life and are ready to be recycled.

Axeon CEO, Lawrence Berns commented: “The issue of end-of-life for batteries in hybrid and electric vehicles is incredibly important to OEMs and car buyers alike, particularly in respect of the economic and environmental considerations. Our project will help to define industry standards and best practice for battery recycling, which will be key to the mass commercialisation of battery-powered vehicles.”