Chapter 12 - Environmental impact assessment of battery storage

Abstract

The environmental impacts of different types of battery storage have been widely investigated by considering a part of their life cycle. These investigations assisted in augmenting the environmental performances of the battery storage in many ways. However, so far, little research is conducted on assessing the probable environmental effects of batteries considering their lifespan, from raw material extraction to end-of-life disposal. Therefore, this work considers the environmental profiles evaluation of lithium-ion (Li-ion), sodium chloride (NaCl), and nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) battery storage, considering the whole lifetime. The impacts of these batteries are estimated using Impact 2002+, EcoPoints 97, and cumulative energy demand methods. The environmental effects are evaluated under many indicators like carcinogens, noncarcinogens, respiratory inorganics, ionizing radiation, ozone layer depletion, aquatic ecotoxicity, land occupation, mineral extraction, nonrenewable energy, terrestrial ecotoxicity, respiratory organics, and global warming. The impacts are also assessed for the end-point categories of human health, ecosystem quality, climate change, and resources. Moreover, the overall metal emissions such as mercury, zinc, cadmium, lead, copper, and greenhouse gas emissions such as carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide, sulfur oxide, and ammonia are also estimated by the authors for Li-ion, NaCl, and NiMH battery storage. All the findings are compared to realize, which options are superior concerning the environment. The results reveal a significant environmental impact caused by NiMH batteries compared to Li-ion batteries. These impacts are the amount of toxic chemical elements present as a constituent of NiMH batteries. It can be anticipated that a better environmental performance can be achieved through optimization, especially by cautiously picking the constituents, taking into account the toxicity aspects, and minimizing the impacts related to these chemicals.