B2U – provider of large-scale energy storage systems using second-life electric vehicle (EV) batteries – said it works with auto manufacturers, EV fleet operators, dismantling companies and others to source batteries when automotive use is done. Re-use complements recycling by maximizing the residual value of batteries, it said.
Honda and Nissan are investing in emerging tech solutions and partnering with startups and other businesses to reduce electric vehicle battery waste, according to CB Insights. As automakers seek to keep up with rising consumer demand for EVs, a “glut of used EV batteries” with critical raw materials is mounting, holding an average of 80% of their charge capacity, CB Insights said.
B2U Storage Solutions said it uses its EPS technology to deploy EV batteries in large-scale stationary storage. In addition to deploying Honda and Nissan EV batteries at scale, B2U said it has successfully tested GM Bolt and Tesla Model 3 battery packs, demonstrating that its EPS system can be configured to operate any EV battery.
“B2U’s EPS technology has been developed to address the challenges of second life in large-scale energy storage,” said Freeman Hall, co-founder and CEO of B2U Storage Solutions.
The EPS system’s cabinet controllers connect and disconnect batteries wired in series and parallel strings during charge and discharge cycles, with lower-capacity weaker batteries not limiting the output of stronger batteries, B2U said.
“This approach enables our system to achieve efficient energy yield despite the variance in capacity inherent in second life batteries,” Hall said.
Recycling EV batteries helps reduce reliance on raw materials that can be hard to mine and are often found in countries with poor human rights records. The Union of Concerned Scientists says reusing batteries in secondary applications is a “promising strategy.”
The economic potential for battery reuse, or a second life, could help cut the costs of EV batteries and increase the value of a used EV, it said. As the EV market grows, second-life batteries also could be used for low-cost storage for utilities and electricity consumers, UCS said.