Second Life Batteries Used in Energy Storage for Frequency Containment Reserve Service

Abstract

The new Li-ion battery systems used in electric vehicles have an average capacity of 50 kWh and are expected to be discarded when they reach approximately 80% of their initial capacity, because they are considered to no longer be sufficient for traction purposes. Based on the official national future development scenarios and subsequent mathematical modeling of the number of electric vehicles (EVs), up to 400 GWh of storage capacity in discharged batteries will be available on the EU market by 2035. Therefore, since the batteries still have a considerable capacity after the end of their first life, they could be used in many stationary applications during their second life, such as support for renewables, flexibility, energy arbitrage, peak shaving, etc. Due to the high output power achieved in a short time, one of the most promising applications of these batteries are ancillary services. The study assesses the economic efficiency of the used batteries and presents several main scenarios depending on the likely future development of the interconnected EU regulatory energy market. The final results indicate that the best results of second-life batteries utilization lie in the provision of Frequency Containment Reserve Service, both from a technical and economic point of view. The internal rate of return fluctuates from 8% to 21% in the realistic scenario, and it supports the idea that such systems might be able to be in operation without any direct financial subsidies.

End of Electric Vehicle Batteries: Reuse vs. Recycle

“…Similar approaches regarding the remanufacture process but with less automatization and two type of processes presented for direct reuse or remanufacturing costs ranged from 87 €/kWh to 240 €/kWh and discarded the use of PHEV batteries for economic and SOH issues [44]. Since then, these initial values have not changed much over time, recent studies state that the EV battery dismantling costs are 32 €/kWh for the direct battery reuse strategy (extracting the battery from the vehicle and testing its status), 60 €/kWh for the module dismantling and 72 €/kWh when reaching the cell level [27], which is in line with what Janota et al, indicate [45]. Since direct reuse of a battery without significant efforts in remanufacturing can be considered a rare case, it is reasonable to add costs for remanufacturing and adaptation costs.…”

Effects of Incorporating Rail Transport into a Zero-Emission Urban Deliveries System: Application of Light Freight Railway (LFR) Electric Trains

“…These include in particular the limited battery capacity, the limited travel range, and the need to plan routes in a way that provides time necessary to charge the battery. Many authors also point out the possible future problem with disposal of used batteries [114,115].…”

Battery Passports for Second-Life Batteries: An Experimental Assessment of Suitability for Mobile Applications

“…Fixed charging station [25,26] Grid frequency regulation [27,28] Micro grid [29,30] Residential storage [31,32] Utility-scale storage [33,34] Stationary applications are often seen as ideal for second-life batteries, as they generally tolerate lower energy densities than electric vehicles [35]. They allow the use of modules or packs, which avoids prohibitive reconditioning costs [36].…”