Life Cycle Assessment of Lithium-Iron-Phosphate (LiFePO4) Batteries: 1st life vs 2nd life

As a result of the high impacts of the transportation sector (8.8 GT CO2 eq in 2022), the European Parliament will force the EU to register only zero-emission cars, such as electric vehicles. This could pose issues related to battery disposal and overuse of critical raw materials, which is why, an interesting solution to reduce this burden could be the second life. Therefore, in this research, the impacts of second-life lithium-iron-phosphate (LiFePO4) batteries will be verified using the life-cycle perspective, taking Enel Green Power's "Second Life" project as a case study. It is shown how through the reuse of LiFePO4 batteries, ‒49.65 kg CO2 eq, ‒7.15 kg 1.4-DCB eq, ‒1.52 kg Cu eq, and ‒10.98 kg oil eq could be avoided, as well as additional social risks that could potentially be faced, such as child and forced labor, risk of non-fatal accidents, human trafficking, and risk of low wages.