USED NISSAN LEAF BATTERIES LIFE

A new fast grading process, essential to make batteries available for “second life” has been developed by researchers at WMG, University of Warwick for car manufacturer Nissan.

When electric vehicles end their life the remaining storage capacity of the lithium battery is expected to be higher than 70 per cent. After this, they can be reused for less demanding “second life” applications such as domestic and industrial energy storage.

Car company Nissan was keen to explore ways to make a much faster grading process for its used Li-ion batteries from the Nissan LEAF – allowing re-use of old battery packs or modules instead of disposing or recycling them.

Part-funded by the government’s Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy department, the UK Energy Storage Laboratory project was launched.

Professor David Greenwood from WMG, University of Warwick said: “Automotive batteries deliver some great environmental benefits, but they consume a lot of resources in doing so. Opening up a second life for batteries improves the environmental and the economic value we draw from those resources before they need recycling. I’m delighted that by working with the partners in this project, we’ve made it much easier to access those second life applications.”

Francisco Carranza, Managing Director from Nissan Energy, added: “The number of electric vehicle batteries reaching end-of-service is set to increase from thousands to tens of thousands per annum by 2025. These batteries typically retain significant capacity and power delivery capability, and their re-use in so-called second-life applications has been proposed as a means to extend the battery value chain and minimise waste by deferring recycling.”

Worcester launches hydrogen boiler system

Worcester Bosch has developed a fully functional boiler system that runs on 100 per cent pure hydrogen gas.

With major steps being taken in transport to develop electric and hybrid cars, removing carbon from the heating and hot water industry is proving much more difficult. With a third of UK greenhouse gases coming from homes, the UK will not meet its climate change targets without a revolution in home heating.

The only by-product of burning hydrogen gas is water, which is why Worcester Bosch believes this has the potential to be one of the main solutions that could help decarbonise heating and hot water in UK homes.

The prototype has been designed to also run effectively on natural gas. This means that in the future if hydrogen gas becomes reality, those who have a ‘hydrogen-ready’ boiler can convert to hydrogen without the need for an entirely new heating system.

The development of hydrogen-fired boilers will mean the millions of heating systems that will already be installed can be used rather than replaced.

Cirencester agri-tech business secures EU approval for organic farming products

Eden Research, based at Poulton near Cirencester, has confirmed that three of its EU-registered active ingredients, geraniol, eugenol and thymol, have been approved for use in organic farming following inclusion in the EU’s Organic Production Regulation.

Eden, which develops sustainable products for crop protection, animal health and consumer products around the world, can now make its products available to organic growers with the levels of success often associated with conventional chemical pesticides, providing the company’s growers with another alternative and sustainable solution. Eden says it is the only UK listed company focused on biopesticides for sustainable agriculture.

It invests in research and development concentrating on protecting highvalue crops, improving crop yields and marketability.

Sean Smith, CEO of Eden Research, said: “It is clear that there is growing demand from consumers within the EU for organic products and this is matched by rapidly growing production.”