BMW is expanding an innovative process for reclaiming and reusing EV raw materials in building a brand-new €10 million ($10.4 million) cell recycling center. The new German plant will work to radically slash costs in building EVs and push the company closer to a closed-loop battery cell production.
BMW is developing what it calls “direct recycling,” where recovered raw materials aren’t reverted to their original state but rather fed back into the cell production cycle at BMW’s battery cell competence centers. The method replaces energy-intensive chemical and thermal processing methods and gives BMW quick access to pricey raw materials – lithium, cobalt, as well as graphite, manganese, nickel, and copper – saving money and time to get these materials back into use.
The direct recycling method involves discharging batteries before opening the battery cell cans and removing the electrode. Then after the electrodes dry, they are shredded, separating the active material from the conducting foils, which can then be regenerated and processed further.
The method was developed by BMW Group scientists at similar centers in Munich and Parsdorf, Germany, but with the new factory, it will be implemented on a larger scale. Once the processes are finalized, battery cell material in the mid-double-digit tonne range can be recycled per year, the company stated.
The new recycling center will be built in Kirchroth, in the Straubing-Bogen district of Lower Bavaria. Installation work at the building is already scheduled to begin in the second half of 2025. Once completed, validation of the recycling method in near-series processes will get underway, BMW stated.
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