In 2017, electric vehicle (EV) sales worldwide broke one million. That’s when Steven Chung, cofounder and CEO of ReJoule, started wondering: “What will happen with all the battery packs when they are no longer good enough for the road?”
Recycling lithium-ion batteries have a considerable economic and environmental cost. But when retired from cars, they tend to retain most of their initial capacity, often upwards of 80%. While the range may be insufficient for driving, they can still be used for stationery energy applications.
Chung was concerned that there was no fast and reliable way to understand a battery’s health. Does this one have 20% capacity – in which case, the best option is to recycle it, or 80%, in which case, it can be repurposed to power homes, businesses, and the grid for years to come?
So, how do you determine the value of a used battery? The industry benchmark is to cycle it. This entails fully charging and then discharging the battery. The method is slow and expensive. A single cycling machine can cost upward of $100,000 and is operated only by highly trained technicians. Worst of all, it takes hours to test a single battery. If we depended on this method, nearly all decommissioned batteries would just be prematurely recycled – and all of that value would be lost.
Automakers have predictive models based on basic data gathered by battery management systems, but these laboratory models don’t always match real-world data. A globally recognised OEM contacted ReJoule because their model told them their battery was at 30% health, but when they decommissioned it from the truck and cycled it, they learned it was actually closer to 90%! Therefore, the battery could have stayed in the vehicle.
Chung designed an alternative method that slashes test time from as long as ten hours to less than 10 minutes. The cost is far lower, and the logistics are more straightforward. The technology works with any battery type and comprises proprietary hardware, software, and algorithms. To date, it has been used primarily on lithium-ion batteries from electric trucks, buses, forklifts, and passenger vehicles.
Fast forward to 2023, global EV sales are expected to surpass 14 million, and ReJoule has deployed its innovation across three continents and raised over $20 million in funding. The technology can work with any battery type but has mainly tested varieties of lithium-ion batteries from electric trucks, buses, forklifts, and passenger vehicles. ReJoule’s solution comprises proprietary hardware, software, and algorithms that can perform a test in 10 minutes or less with >98% accuracy compared to the industry benchmark – cycling. In fact, one of ReJoule’s partners was able to process over 1,000 EV batteries in just three months with just one ReJoule device – on average, testing 20 batteries a day! Trying to achieve the same throughput with cycling could take at least ten times longer. Check out this one-minute virtual demo to see how the three-part solution works together!
ReJoule is partnering with the US’ National Scrap Vehicle Reporting Program (NSVRP) on a pilot to create a testing process for recyclers that includes basic as well as ReJoule’s advanced testing on EV batteries. By knowing the battery’s health, recyclers can determine the highest and best use of the battery. For example, a vehicle deemed a total loss may have a perfectly healthy battery that can be remanufactured to go back in a similar EV. Whereas a battery with only 75% of its original capacity may not be ideal for the road, it can be perfectly good to store backup power in a stationary storage application.
While no standard process exists today, the pilot’s goal is first to create protocols and procedures for the most popular EV types and expand from there. “Recyclers getting pennies on the dollar for batteries today will now have a third-party verified process to understand what the battery is truly worth,” Chung explained. By doing so, ReJoule enables a more circular economy of every battery and maximizes its value.
Interested in being a pilot partner? Reach out to ReJoule at info@rejouleenergy.com and reference this article heading. To learn more about ReJoule’s products and services, please visit rejouleenergy.com/our-technology
