Life cycle analysis of the lithium-ion batteries used in electric cars by the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (EMPA) suggests they have a lower environmental impact than previously thought.
The study found that the environmental burden of the battery is no more than 15% of the total environmental impact, with about 7.5% coming from recycling the battery. There are also opportunities to reduce this impact further by using the batteries for other forms of energy storage when they are no longer able to power a car. They can still hold up to 80% of their charge after years of driving a car, so could be used for storing electrical energy from wind turbines or photovoltaics.
Further information can be found at ScienceDaily