USABC awards $1.08 million Li-ION battery recycling project to Worcester Polytechnic Institute
The United States Advanced Battery Consortium LLC (USABC), a collaborative organization of FCA US LLC, Ford Motor Company and General Motors, today announced the award of $1.08 million to Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in Worcester, Massachusetts for Phase II of a lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery recycling contract.
The contract award, which includes a 50 percent cost share, funds a 24-month project. Building on Phase I, this contract will enable WPI to demonstrate the ability of its process to recycle spent Li-ion batteries and produce new cathode materials to generate a higher nickel cathode powder. This material is of increasing relevance in the current market which is shifting towards higher nickel content cathode materials due to their energy density benefits.
USABC is a subsidiary of the United States Council for Automotive Research LLC (USCAR). Enabled by a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), USABC's mission is to develop electrochemical energy storage technologies that support commercialization of hybrid, plug-in hybrid, electric and fuel cell vehicles. In support of its mission, USABC has developed mid- and long-term goals to guide its projects and measure its progress. For more information, visit http://www.uscar.org/usabc.
"This contract award with Worcester Polytechnic Institute is part of USABC's broad battery technology research and development program," said Steve Zimmer, executive director of USCAR. "Programs like this are critical to advancing the technology needed to meet both near- and long-term goals that will enable broader scale vehicle electrification."
Founded in 1992, USCAR is the collaborative automotive technology company for FCA US LLC, Ford Motor Company and General Motors. The goal of USCAR is to further strengthen the technology base of the domestic auto industry through cooperative research and development. For more information, visit www.uscar.org. All USCAR Member companies have joined in becoming signatories of the Responsible Raw Materials Initiative (RRMI, now part of the Responsible Minerals Initiative, RMI) Declaration of Support.
