Electric cars to get even greener as solid-state batteries cut carbon footprint
New batteries will reduce production emissions by a quarter
New batteries are going to make electric vehicle production much better for the environment – great news for all you eco-friendly EV drivers.
Raw material experts have studied how the move to solid state batteries will cut carbon emissions during the battery production stage, and the results are pretty insane.
This future switch will cut emissions by a quarter, which will make a huge difference to how environmentally friendly electric cars are to make – yay!
Transport & Environment (T&E), a green think tank, expects to see massive changes in the next couple of years when these next-gen solid-state batteries start making it off the assembly line and into new electric cars.
Solid state batteries use solid ceramic material instead of liquid electrolytes – like current lithium-ion batteries – to transfer electric current.
The production cuts emissions significantly compared to lithium-ion batteries, and T&E believes the carbon foot could reduce by as much as 29%.
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But the good green news continues – E&T also estimates that carbon footprint from electric car batteries could drop by as much as 39% (yep, two whole fifths) by using more sustainably sourced materials.
Solid state batteries require much less cobalt and graphite because of their higher energy density, which drains less scarce resources and improves labour practices.
New mining methods like geothermal wells (excuse the non-stop science lesson here) also emit less CO2 and reduce climate impact.
The long and short of it is that electric cars are set to get even greener as these batteries come into play in the immediate future.
All you green-licence plate owners out there will be reaping the secondary benefits of lighter EVs, better range, faster charging and potentially cheaper prices too. Solid state batteries doing EV owners a real solid there…
If you're new to electric cars, then our EV guides are a quick-fire way to get your head around the jargon.