Remondis' BLC improves battery analysis with Novum technology

Battery Life Cycle Company (BLC), a joint venture between Remondis subsidiary TSR and Rhenus Automotive to recycle used electric vehicle batteries, is now relying on rapid AI-powered tests from Dresden-based technology company Novum Engineering. With this, BLC wants to identify batteries suitable for reuse in seconds in order to specifically integrate them into second-life storage solutions instead of recycling them.

Until now, the lack of reliable information on battery returnability has been a particular challenge, as Lukas Brandl, COO of BLC, explained in a Novum press release yesterday. That should change with the battery passport. But batteries in this regard are not expected to last for eight to 15 years at the earliest. “Until then, we still face the challenge of having to collect almost all the battery data ourselves,” says Brandl.

The Novum solution, which includes data analysis and hardware, promises a significant increase in efficiency: “Our battery tests used to take two to four hours. With Novum, this should be possible in just 90 seconds in the future.” The system is currently still in the stage where the AI ​​is being trained. But the first results give the company confidence. The goal is to accurately collect all the necessary data on condition and capacity in order to make an informed decision on whether the batteries should be given a second life in vehicles or as stationary energy storage devices or whether they should be recycled.

According to the information, BLC plans to use the new technology at two locations. According to Brandl, the company expects to process up to 5,000 batteries per year in Rheda-Wiedenbrück, while 30,000 batteries per year are expected to be processed at the new site, currently being built in Magdeburg. “Not all of them will be tested, but we of course hope that as many batteries as possible will be given a second life in the vehicles or battery storage systems of our partner companies,” Brandl said.