Docotral thesis defence – Mudit Chordia, Chalmers University of Technology

Title: Batteries at Crossroads: Past, Present, and Future Environmental Impacts of Lithium-ion Batteries

Thesis (public): https://research.chalmers.se/en/publication/547988

When: Monday, 24 September, 13:15

Where: Vasa B (building Vasa Hus 2). Vera Sandbergs Allé 8. Entrance Floor. Room 2221 (hybrid)

Online: https://chalmers.zoom.us/j/61346020623

Full abstract and updated information can be found at Chalmers University of Technology’s website: https://www.chalmers.se/en/current/calendar/Mudit-Chordia-547988/

Electric cars are growing fast, and so is the demand for the batteries that power them. While batteries are vital for cutting climate emissions, making them also leaves its own mark on the planet. This thesis looks at three big parts of a battery’s journey: how raw materials are mined, how batteries are built in large factories, and what happens to them at the end of their life. The findings show that bigger factories can make batteries more efficiently, but they also bring new challenges like higher emissions at the production site. Mining, in particular, can have very different impacts depending on where and how it is done, and future reliance on lower-grade ores may drive these impacts even higher. The research also shows that the way we measure impacts can change the results — with past assessments often based on unrepresentative data, present results shaped by high variability in supply chains and study scope, and future outcomes likely to diverge further as data choices and methods evolve. In short, batteries are essential for a cleaner future, but their footprint must be carefully tracked as technology and supply chains change.