Though much effort is put into recycling batteries, much of the metal contained inside of them (e.g. manganese, cobalt, lithium and nickel) ends up going to waste. To generate a greater supply of these metals, scientists at the University of Edinburgh have developed an eco-friendly technique that uses bacteria to extract manganese, nickel, lithium and cobalt.
These metals are critical to industries like solar photovoltaics and EVs. Since China controls much of the processing and refining of these metals it can be difficult to not only get a constant supply of them but to find them at affordable rates as well.
However, a constant and affordable supply of these critical metals is required if we are going to end our dependence on petrochemicals and instead rely on electricity for power, transportation and heating.
Recycled Metals Can Make Building Homes with Solar Panels Cheaper
In the long run, supply of these metals can have an impact on builders aiming to build energy efficient homes, particularly regarding the use of solar panels.
Since nickel, lithium, cobalt and manganese are generally components of batteries for solar photovoltaic systems and EVs the hope is that by using these bacteria to extract metals from old batteries, supply will increase, which will reduce the prices of renewable energy systems and building materials that rely on these metals.
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