Comment on Can Flow Batteries Finally Beat Lithium?

• bizzle@lemmy.world ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

  If it still relies on mined lithium, it’s some pretty bad stuff. Come to find out mining isn’t super great for the environment.

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  • Viper_NZ@lemmy.nz ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

    Much of the lithium is mined in Australia or via salt brines in Chile.

    It’s not worse environmentally than the other mined materials that go into a vehicle.

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    • HerbalGamer@sh.itjust.works ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

      That doesn’t make it a good thing.

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      • Viper_NZ@lemmy.nz ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

        Ok so let’s drill into it further.

        Lithium gets mined once and then enters a circular system where batteries can be recycled after 10+ years in service.

        It doesn’t exist in isolation either. While lithium is mined, its competitors (oil, coal, gas) are too with significantly higher environmental costs. They’re also not reusable.

        Zinc Bromide batteries look like a great idea door static energy storage but if you’re worried about mining, I have bad news.

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      • CmdrShepard42@lemm.ee ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

        But it does mean it isn’t any worse as well. Plus lithium can be recycled.

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• JustJack23@slrpnk.net ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

  Cobalt: earth.org/cobalt-mining/

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  • Viper_NZ@lemmy.nz ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

    There is zero cobalt in a lithium iron phosphate battery.

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    • JustJack23@slrpnk.net ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

      Is that the most commonly used type of batteries in EVs?

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      • Viper_NZ@lemmy.nz ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

        I’m not sure on the global percentage, but they’re becoming far more common. Most of the top selling EVs where I live (Tesla Model Y/3, BYD Atto 3, BYD Dolphin, MG ZS EV) all use lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries.

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      • linearchaos@lemmy.world ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

        They have a somewhat lower energy density so they’ve been avoided, but they’re way safer and better eco wise to the point that they’re getting uptake

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  • Aux@lemmynsfw.com ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

    This is irrelevant. First, there are chemistries not using cobalt, as explained already. Second, elemental cobalt is infinitely recyclable as all elemental metals, thus we don’t need to mine that much more, just like we don’t mine as much iron ore as we did centuries ago (relative to overall consumption). Yes, we still mine a lot of iron ore, but we recycle a lot as well.

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    • JustJack23@slrpnk.net ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

      This cobalt must be mined first to be recycled later, and being infinity recyclable doesn’t mean it will be, for example if it’s cheaper to mine new cobalt instead of recycling.

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      • Aux@lemmynsfw.com ⁨10⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

        It was already mined, it only needs to be recycled if we continue using old battery chemistries. Which is unlikely.

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