Second Life Batteries to Power Remote African Locations

One of the biggest problems with electric vehicles is that their batteries degrade over time and performance drops off, until the batteries have to be replaced. The lowered performance could be due to several things, for example, temperature, cycles, or just time. In under a decade the battery could need replaced. For example, in the US batteries are mandated to offer a warranty of 8 years or 100,000 miles, which should be the minimum that batteries are expected to last. Researchers are currently trying to find economical ways of recycling batteries

That means that with the growing popularity of EVs, more and more battery packs will be replaced and disposed of. However, they are not useless. Batteries replaced in EVs will still have between 70 and 80% of their capacity left over. Instead of throwing them away, some companies are looking for further use for them – a second life. For example, two UK companies have joined together with a Nigerian solar products supplier to use second life batteries to provide electricity to remote locations in Nigeria and other sub-Saharan companies.

In2tec Ltd and AceOn Group have partnered with John Moores University in Liverpool, and Nevadic Solar to use the second life vehicle powerpacks as interchangeable packs in AceOn’s portable power generators and mini-grid systems. The research was helped by funding from Innivate UK.

Dr Mark Hudman, Development & Engineering Director at In2tec, said. “Developing this technology is not only beneficial for UK industry, but also retains a humanitarian perspective. Getting these off-grid systems to areas such as Nigeria, Botswana and other counties in the Sub-Saharan Africa territories gives electricity to those who really need it including hospitals, schools and homes.”

Once the batteries have been removed from the EVs they can be installed in AceOn’s new swappable powerpacks. The HIGHESS project will facilitate steady supply of electricity to rural and unserved areas.

In2tec’s will develop a Battery Management System (BMS) for the project. The BMS will be mounted to the battery pack and monitor the charge and how the battery can be discharged. Utilising In2tec’s patented ReUSE PCBA the BMS can be completely recycled at end of life or easily repaired should a single component fail on the PCBA itself using In2tec’s ReCYCLE technology.

“We’re really excited about the possibilities AceOn Energy Storage systems can bring. It’s a fantastic demonstration of the technical skills and innovative ideas coming out of the UK tech industry. Both In2tec and AceOn are leading the way for the rest of the industry to develop sustainable technologies that bring circularity to the manufacturing process, not only reducing the levels of e-waste production but also improving the lives of those less fortunate overseas,” concluded Dr Hudman.

The project's will accelerate access to affordable off-grid electricity from clean energy sources.