Early-stage sustainability evaluation of nanoscale cathode materials for lithium ion batteries

Results of an early-stage sustainability evaluation of two development strategies for new nanoscale cathode materials for Li-ion batteries are reported: (i) a new production pathway for an existing material (LiCoO2) and (ii) a new nanomaterial (LiMnPO4). Nano-LiCoO2 was synthesized by a single-source precursor route at a low temperature with a short reaction time, which results in a smaller grain size and, thereby, a better diffusivity for Li ions. Nano-LiMnPO4 was synthesized by a wet chemical method. The sustainability potential of these materials was then investigated (at the laboratory and pilot production scales). The results show that the environmental impact of nano-LiMnPO4 is lower than that of the other examined nanomaterial by several factors regardless of the indicator used for comparison. In contrast to commercial cathode materials, this new material shows, particularly on an energy and capacity basis, results of the same order of magnitude as those of lithium manganese oxide (LiMn2O4) and only slightly higher values than those for lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4); values that are clearly lower than those for high-temperature LiCoO2.