Honda Joins Race to Find Second Life for EV Batteries
Honda is following the Nissan and Renault by planning a second-life strategy for it’s old auto batteries to as part of a drive to reduce CO2 emissions.
The automaker is conducting research, together with Ohio-based American Electric Power (AEP), towards repurposing used Honda EV batteries into AEP’s power grid. These batteries will store previously-generated power that could be used at peak times, such as when drivers return home from work and plug their cars into charge. In many ways, it’s similar to how vehicle-2-grid installations already work, although those batteries stay in the cars.
As demand for electricity grows, suppliers may be unable to meet them during peak times. EVs have particularly high requirements because the batteries are large and fast or rapid chargers have a high rate of charge. Lithium-ion batteries are only 5% recyclable, causing issues for countries which don’t have facilities to dispose of them ecologically. Additionally, lithium is hard and costly to extract, both in financial and environmental terms, meaning if the life of the batteries can be extended, it reduces CO2 emissions substantially.
Honda says that the power stored in the batteries will mainly be generated by renewable energy sources, such as wind and power. AEP will now begin to study the feasibility of integrating the batteries into its utility grid.
