Materials for Batteries

With the emerging EV market world wide there is huge demand for batteries . All R&D Houses are busy finding new technologies for cost effective efficient Batteries. At present Lithium is commanding Battery Market. Future something else may take over.

In an electric vehicle or hybrid electric vehicle, the electric motors are powered by a rechargeable battery. Their use is becoming increasingly adopted by many countries. An executive order signed by US President Joe Biden mandates that by 2030, electric vehicles must account for 50% of all new car sales. A similar requirement that calls for electric cars to account for 40% of all sales is in place in China, the largest EV market in the world. Additionally, the European Union wants at least 30 million zero-emission vehicles on its highways by that time. Currently, there are an estimated 5 million electric cars in circulation in China, making it the nation with the most electric cars. With about 1.77 million cars, the US comes second, followed by Germany with 570,000 cars.

Lithium-ion batteries, the kind that power almost all EVs, use five “critical minerals”: lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese, and graphite. Lithium, an exceptionally light metal, gives lithium batteries the highest energy density of any battery cell. Thus, they can store more energy than alkaline batteries or any single-use battery of a comparable size. And they are superb performers in extreme temperatures, both hot and cold.

Saksham took overview of various battery materials, its availability to meet demand supply gap, present research status world wide.

This is a Tesla battery.

To manufacture it you need:
12 tons of rock for Lithium
5 tons of Cobalt minerals
3 tons of mineral for nickel
12 tons of copper ore

Move 250 tons of soil to obtain:
12 kg of Lithium
30 pounds of nickels
22 kg of manganese
15 pounds of Cobalt
100 Kg of rams
200 kg of aluminum, steel, and plastic.

The Caterpillar 994A used for earthmoving consumes 1000 liters of diesel in 12 hours.