The overall idea of the project is oriented on the full life cycle of a battery: from the material selection and optimisation, over the cell and battery production, to the use phase and finalised with the recycling of the battery. This is supported by advanced characterisation, modelling and simulation, as well as a full sustainability assessment.
The core of ECO²LIB are lithium-ion batteries using the latest generation of anode materials based on silicon in combination with a prelithiation process for lifetime enhancement. Additionally the implementation of high energy cathode materials combined with a low cost and environmental benign aqueous cathode manufacturing process is envisaged. In parallel, advanced electrolytes will be developed and integrated. By using advanced characterisation techniques, the properties of the battery components are assessed in order to improve performance and gain important insights and understanding for the development, upscaling, recycling and sustainability aspects of the battery. These techniques are strongly interlinked with modelling and simulation methodologies to improve safety and cycle life of the battery system. Relevant use cases for the innovative battery will be identified and the requirements for the addressed applications will be assessed. Based on these requirements, cells and battery modules for the use cases will be set up. Besides the building of on state-of-the-art industrial recycling processes will be developed. The ambition is to design and realise a new and more eco-friendly recycling approach for lithium-ion batteries with the highest recycling rate and lower costs.