ESCAPE approach for the sustainability evaluation of spent lithium-ion batteries recovery: Dataset of 33 available technologies

Summary: This study investigates the sustainability of 33 different technologies for lithium-ion battery (LIB) recovery. The ESCAPE tool, which calculates embodied energy and carbon footprint, is used for evaluation. The results show that chemicals and ultrapure water consumption are the most energy-intensive processes, and pyrometallurgy can reduce carbon footprint and energy consumption compared to hydrometallurgy.

Summary: This study introduces a novel approach for sustainability evaluation of new technologies, utilizing embodied energy and CO2 footprint parameters for pre-screening analysis before life cycle assessment. The SUBRAW index is defined to compare environmental impacts of different substituting materials/processes. Results suggest that wet chemical leaching approaches are the most sustainable methods for phosphorus recovery from sewage sludge ash.