Analysis of Deactivation of 18,650 Lithium-Ion Cells in CaCl2, Tap Water and Demineralized Water for Different Insertion Times

The deployment of battery-powered electric vehicles in the market has created a naturally increasing need for the safe deactivation and recycling of batteries. Various deactivating methods for lithium-ion cells include electrical discharging or deactivation with liquids. Such methods are also useful for cases where the cell tabs are not accessible. In the literature analyses, different deactivation media are used, but none include the use of calcium chloride (CaCl2) salt. As compared to other media, the major advantage of this salt is that it can capture the highly reactive and hazardous molecules of Hydrofluoric acid. To analyse the actual performance of this salt in terms of practicability and safety, this experimental research aims to compare it against regular Tap Water and Demineralized Water. This will be accomplished by performing nail penetration tests on deactivated cells and comparing their residual energy against each other. Moreover, these three different media and respective cells are analysed after deactivation, i.e., based on conductivity measurements, cell mass, flame photometry, fluoride content, computer tomography and pH value. It was found that the cells deactivated in the CaCl2 solution did not show any signs of Fluoride ions, whereas cells deactivated in TW showed the emergence of Fluoride ions in the 10th week of the insertion. However, with the addition of CaCl2 in TW, the deactivation process > 48 h for TW declines to 0.5-2 h, which could be an optimal solution for real-world situations where deactivating cells at a high pace is essential.

Automated summary

The increasing deployment of battery-powered electric vehicles in the market has led to a growing need for the safe deactivation and recycling of batteries. Different deactivation methods for lithium-ion cells are used, including electrical discharging and deactivation with liquids. In this experimental research, the use of calcium chloride (CaCl2) salt as a deactivation medium is compared to regular Tap Water and Demineralized Water to analyze its performance and safety. The results show that cells deactivated in CaCl2 solution did not show any signs of Fluoride ions, making it a potential optimal solution for rapid deactivation of cells.