One possibility for electrification of road transport consists of battery electric vehicles in combination with carbon-free sources of electricity. It is highly likely that lithium-ion batteries will provide the basis for this development. In the present paper, we use a recently developed, semi-quantitative assessment scheme to evaluate the relative supply risks associated with the elements used in the functional materials of six different lithium-ion battery types. Eleven different indicators in four supply risk categories are applied to each element; the weighting of the indicators is determined by external experts within the framework of an Analytic Hierarchy Process. The range of supply risk values on the elemental level is distinctly narrower than in our previous work on photovoltaic materials. The highest values are obtained for lithium and cobalt; the lowest for aluminium and titanium. Copper, iron, nickel, carbon (graphite), manganese and phosphorous form the middle group. We then carry out the assessment of the six battery types, to give comparative supply risks at the technology level. For this purpose the elemental supply risk values are aggregated using four different methods. Due to the small spread at the elemental level the supply risk values in all four aggregation methods also lie in a narrow range. Removing lithium, aluminium and phosphorous from the analysis, which are present in all types of battery, improves the situation. For aggregation with the simple arithmetic mean, an uncertainty analysis shows that only lithium-iron phosphate has a measurably lower supply risk compared to the other battery types. For the “cost-share” aggregation using seven elements, lithium cobalt oxide has a substantially higher supply risk than most other types

Abstract:A techno-economic model was developed to investigate the influence of components on the system costs of redox flow batteries. Sensitivity analyses were carried out based on an example of a 10 kW/120 kWh vanadium redox flow battery system, and the costs of the individual components were analyzed. Particular consideration was given to the influence of the material costs and resistances of bipolar plates and energy storage media as well as voltages and electric currents. Based on the developed model, it was possible to formulate statements about the targeted optimization of a developed non-commercial vanadium redox flow battery system and general aspects for future developments of redox flow batteries.

Companies, economies and technologies are vulnerable to supply disruptions or price peaks of specific raw materials. Multiple research groups worldwide have proposed methodologies for determining the criticality of raw materials, including assessments on the vulnerability to supply restrictions. These raw material vulnerability assessments use manifold indicators but are not consistent concerning their selection, calculation, interpretation and weighting. Their indicators estimate a raw material's economic importance or its significance for a strategic goal, or they inform regarding the impact of supply disruptions. Here, we provide an overview of 18 vulnerability assessments in 16 recent criticality studies. Our results reveal 18 different vulnerability indicators, among which a set of six indicators is frequently used and therefore might be recommended for decision makers. The range of possible vulnerability assessment results is exemplified by evaluations of the transition metal copper and the rare earth neodymium. Our overview can serve as a starting point for future raw material criticality assessments concerning the selection of vulnerability indicators and appropriate calculation and weighting methods.

The biobased chemical industry is characterised by strong growth. Innovative products and materials such as biopolymers have been developed, and current European demand for biopolymers exceeds the domestic supply. Agroforestry residues can serve as main sources of the basic building blocks for chemicals and materials. This work assesses sustainably available agroforestry residues to feed a high added-value materials and product bioeconomy. To evaluate bioeconomic potential, a structured three-step approach is applied. Cultivation practices, sustainability issues, legislative restrictions, technical limitations and competitive applications are considered. All data regarding bioeconomic potential are processed on a regional level and mapped by ArcGIS. Our results identify wheat straw as the most promising source in the agricultural sector, followed by maize stover, barley straw and rape straw, which all contain a total concentration of lignocellulose of more than 80% of dry matter. In the forestry sector, residue bark from two coniferous species, spruce and pine, is the most promising source, with approximately 70% lignocellulose. Additionally, coniferous bark contains considerable amounts of tannin, which has attracted increasing interest for industrial utilisation. A sensitivity analysis concerning removal rates, residue-to-crop ratios, changes in farming technologies and competing applications is applied at the end of the study to consolidate our results.

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