Iron Flow Batteries – Life Cycle Analysis (LCA Comparison)
Long-duration energy storage systems are crucial for leveraging and managing intermittent solar and wind power. But, is the storage solution you’re considering as clean as it can be? It is if you’re looking at iron flow batteries.
In an independent assessment conducted at the University of California-Irvine, scientists evaluated the cradle-to-gate environmental impact of three different flow battery types. Researchers assessed what happens before the in-use and end-of-life phases of a product’s life cycle and provided insight into the environmental impact associated with the production of the iron flow battery and made comparisons between the impact of the lithium-ion and other flow battery types.
Iron flow batteries proved to be the cleanest technology with the lowest global warming potential (GWP) compared to batteries using vanadium and zinc. They’re also significantly less harmful to the environment than lithium-ion batteries.
Not All Energy Storage Solutions Are Created Equal
IRON FLOW BATTERIES COMPARED TO OTHER BATTERIES
• Minimal resource depletion
• Lower energy consumption in production
• Fewer greenhouse gas emissions
• Less air and water pollution
• More ozone support
The most sustainable battery chemistry to produce
Potential Environmental Impact of Flow Battery Production by Battery Component
MORE MINING
Compared to earth-abundant iron, the amount
of lithium on our planet is miniscule. The less
abundant a mineral is, the more land you must
mine to find it. That creates more scars on the
land and ecosystem disruption. Rare minerals
also usually require more processing, which
results in more cost, energy use and potential
pollution.
MORE INFRASTRUCTURE
More than half the world’s lithium supply lies in
the brine under the desert salt flats of Bolivia,
Chile and Argentina. Extracting this lithium
involves pumping some 500,000 gallons of
water per tonne of lithium into the land to
bring the brine to the surface. Because the
South American “Lithium Triangle” region is
so dry, water may need to be transported to
the mine. That can add miles of pipeline to the
environmental degradation lithium mines already
create.
MORE WATER POLLUTION
Toxic chemicals have leached out of lithium
mining operations around the globe, polluting soil
and waterways, harming plant and animal life in
mining areas.
IRON FLOW BATTERIES: AN ECO-FRIENDLY ENDING
The life cycle of a product also includes its disposal. Compared to lithium-ion batteries, iron flow batteries offer the most environmentally friendly disposal options.
Li-ion batteries:
• Require costly, energy-intensive smelting operations for recycling
• Contain a wide variety of materials, which makes recycling more difficult
• Are difficult to dismantle for recycling
• Are classified as hazardous waste due to combustibility and chemistry involved
Iron flow batteries:
• Contain no toxic materials
• Require no special permits for disposal
• Can easily be broken down into components and recycled
SUMMARY
There’s little difference in the environmental impact of one battery to another when batteries are in use. What differentiates iron flow batteries from other types is the environmental impact of production and end-of-life activities. Iron flow batteries are cleaner to produce and easier to recycle and reuse electrolyte at end of life.
Along with a greener life cycle, iron flow batteries have longer life: 20 years, versus the 7-to-10-year life of a heavily cycled Li-ion battery.
There’s less environmental impact when you need to build fewer batteries over the long run. That, too, makes iron flow batteries the eco-friendly choice.
ABOUT ESS INC.
Established in 2011, ESS Inc. manufactures low-cost, long-duration iron flow batteries for commercial and utility-scale energy storage applications requiring 4-10+ hours of flexible energy capacity. The Energy WarehouseTM
(EW) and Energy CenterTM (EC), use iron, salt, and water for the electrolyte, and deliver an environmentally safe, long-life energy storage solution for the world’s renewable energy infrastructure. With its safe, earth-abundant,
proven iron flow battery technology, ESS Inc. is helping project developers, utilities, and EPC’s make the transition to more flexible non-lithiumion
storage that is better suited for the grid and the environment.
