As candidates threw haymakers in Wednesday’s Democratic primary debate, somehow a nuanced question about lithium-ion batteries flew under the radar. Moderator Jon Ralston asked Sen. Elizabeth Warren about the tradeoffs of mining and using lithium.
In her answer, Warren acknowledged the need for specific minerals that are pivotal to renewable energy technologies. She said she’d consider exceptions to mining for them on public lands if sustainable methods of extraction are used.
Breaking down batteries
- Lithium-ion: A type of rechargeable battery that’s already ubiquitous in consumer electronics, such as wireless earbuds, cordless power tools, watches, smartphones, and laptops.
- Energy density: The amount of energy a battery can hold. It’s tripled for lithium-ion batteries since 2010, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. Lithium-ion has high energy density, long charge cycles, and is lightweight.
- The downsides: Mining and refining the precious metal has ravaged nearby ecosystems and communities, as The Verge explains. And the mining of cobalt, another material needed for li-ion batteries, is linked to child labor in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
What’s next?
Taking more lithium from the Earth is a near certainty. It’s the power source for EVs, which are essential for decarbonizing transportation. EV penetration hinges on lithium-ion batteries becoming abundant and affordable.
Why? Batteries make up 42% of the average EV’s total production cost. For EVs to reach price parity with gas-powered cars, battery prices must drop to $100/kWH from today’s range of $180–$200/kWH.
Tech startups are on it
They’re trying to improve energy density and bring costs down. Yesterday, a Bill Gates-backed energy fund led a $20 million investment into Lilac Solutions, an Oakland, CA, startup working on efficient lithium extraction methods. Earlier this month, Wired profiled:
- Sila Nanotechnologies, which pairs nanoengineered silicon particles with lithium-ion cells to turbocharge their effectiveness
- Advano, which sources its raw material from the scrap piles of electronics makers
Bottom line: As companies work to make lithium-ion more scalable and cheap, it will become a key commodity. But to truly make progress in sustainability, companies and governments need to be mindful of how they source the relevant materials upstream.
