Energy & Sustainability

Image

Energy storage systems play a pivotal role towards decarbonization, enabling the transition from the current fossil-fuel based model to a sustainable renewable energy-based system. Currently, lithium ion batteries (LIBs) show a dominant role in the portable electronics and electric vehicle markets. However, LIBs show serious sustainability issues arising from the use of scarce/toxic materials and organic electrolytes. Accordingly, lower the environmental burdens of storage systems by exploiting the potential of renewable and non-toxic resources for LIBs and other systems including sodium ion batteries, zinc ion batteries, metal-oxygen or metal-sulfur batteries. We delve into the quantification of the environmental impacts associated with the fabrication of such batteries using life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology to provide cues towards the development of novel energy storage alternatives with reduced environmental impact.