UNSW develops three-minute lithium-ion battery health test
UNSW researchers unveiled a three-minute lithium-ion battery health test, cutting costs by over 80% and speeding assessments by 95.5% to boost second-life battery use and reduce waste.
Researchers at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in Sydney have created a prototype battery health test that reduces assessment time by 95.5% and lowers costs by more than 80% compared with current methods. The technology uses short electrical pulses to evaluate lithium-ion battery cells in under three minutes, avoiding the risks of full charge-discharge cycles that can damage or overheat batteries. Existing tests cost around AUD 120 per electric vehicle battery pack and take approximately 10 hours to complete.
The UNSW team’s approach measures cell responses to pulses and applies statistical models to estimate battery health with over 90% accuracy in lab tests. The prototype is designed to integrate with existing management systems used by recyclers and energy storage operators, supporting three major lithium-ion chemistries: lithium iron phosphate (LFP), nickel cobalt aluminum (NCA), and nickel manganese cobalt (NMC). The researchers aim to reduce the cost of assessments to under AUD 25 per battery.
Associate Professor Huadong Mo highlighted the potential for Australia to develop a local second-life battery industry, noting that up to 95% of a battery’s components can be recovered for reuse or recycling. He emphasized that only a small fraction of lithium-ion batteries in Australia are currently collected for recycling despite their recyclability. The technology could help redirect retired electric vehicle batteries toward grid and community energy storage applications.
The UNSW team has partnered with Malaysia-based battery recycling company DY New Energy on a AUD 1.3 million project to test the technology on more than 500 batteries in real-world conditions. The collaboration will develop a machine-learning decision engine to recommend whether retired batteries should be reused or recycled, with insights integrated into battery management systems for real-time monitoring.