Exploring circular economy principles for electric vehicle batteries
Reem ABDEL-LATIF, Ibrahim SHABAN
Abstract. The rapid adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) reflects a global shift toward sustainable, low-emission transportation. However, this transition poses significant challenges, particularly the large-scale production and eventual disposal of lithium-ion batteries, which raise environmental, economic, and safety concerns. This research aims to address these challenges by developing a decision-support framework (DSF) for structured evaluation and routing of end-of-life (EOL) EV batteries. Existing studies primarily emphasize recycling as the solution for EOL battery management. However, recycling is energy-intensive, costly, and introduces safety risks, highlighting the need for alternative solutions. The proposed DSF evaluates EOL batteries in stages, informed by diagnostic metrics alongside capacity, and fault characteristics. These inputs then guide the selection of the most appropriate circular economy (CE) pathway, including Reuse, Repair, Refurbish, Remanufacture, Repurpose, and Recycle. The expected outcome should present a robust, actionable framework enabling stakeholders to adopt sustainable practices. This framework should address the entire lifecycle of EV batteries, encompassing initial use, multiple reuse scenarios (if applicable), and responsible EOL management. These efforts align with the principles of Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle, advancing the transition toward a circular economy.
Keywords
Circular Economy, Electric Vehicles, End-of-Life Management, Sustainability, Electric Vehicle Batteries
Published online 6/20/2026, 6 pages
Copyright © 2026 by the author(s)
Published under license by Materials Research Forum LLC., Millersville PA, USA
Citation: Reem ABDEL-LATIF, Ibrahim SHABAN, Exploring circular economy principles for electric vehicle batteries, Materials Research Proceedings, Vol. 67, pp 948-953, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21741/9781644904176-129
The article was published as article 129 of the book Climate Action and Sustainability
Content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI.
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