IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/rensus/v216y2025ics1364032125003442.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Integrating sustainability across the lifecycle of electric vehicle batteries: Circular supply chain challenges, innovations, and global policy impacts

Author

Listed:
  • Aishwarya, V.M.
  • Ekren, Banu Yetkin
  • Singh, Tej
  • Singh, Vedant

Abstract

This study investigates the integration of sustainability practices into the circular supply chain (SC) of electric vehicle (EV) batteries to address environmental and economic challenges. Using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) protocol, a systematic review of 147 articles (2009–2024) identifies key challenges, solutions, innovations, and policy measures shaping the EV battery SC. The research uncovers 10 major challenges, 31 sub-challenges, and 160 detailed challenges, highlighting issues related to SC resilience, environmental impact, and economic sustainability. In response, 40 main solutions and 174 complete solutions are mapped, leading to the identification of 102 detailed technologies, 24 sub-technologies, and 8 core technologies supporting circular economy principles. These technologies are analysed for their long-term industry impact, with comparisons within categories to highlight their advantages, disadvantages, and contributions to circular economy goals. Additionally, global policy analysis reveals regulatory advancements, with China and the UK leading efforts to improve recycling, material recovery, and sustainability governance. This study also compares EV battery policies across countries using indicators like policy coverage, enforcement intensity, and effectiveness, highlighting their impact on sustainability and resource efficiency. A conceptual framework is developed to integrate these challenges, solutions, and innovations into a sustainable EV battery SC. The study concludes with theoretical insights, industry recommendations, and policy implications, offering a structured pathway toward sustainable and resilient EV battery SCs.

Suggested Citation

  • Aishwarya, V.M. & Ekren, Banu Yetkin & Singh, Tej & Singh, Vedant, 2025. "Integrating sustainability across the lifecycle of electric vehicle batteries: Circular supply chain challenges, innovations, and global policy impacts," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 216(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:rensus:v:216:y:2025:i:c:s1364032125003442
    DOI: 10.1016/j.rser.2025.115671
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1364032125003442
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.rser.2025.115671?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Manzetti, Sergio & Mariasiu, Florin, 2015. "Electric vehicle battery technologies: From present state to future systems," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 1004-1012.
    2. Chen, Jiumei & Zhang, Wen & Gong, Bengang & Zhang, Xiaoqi & Li, Hongping, 2022. "Optimal policy for the recycling of electric vehicle retired power batteries," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 183(C).
    3. Nguyen-Tien, Viet & Dai, Qiang & Harper, Gavin D.J. & Anderson, Paul A. & Elliott, Robert J.R., 2022. "Optimising the geospatial configuration of a future lithium ion battery recycling industry in the transition to electric vehicles and a circular economy," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 321(C).
    4. Ashish Rudola & Ruth Sayers & Christopher J. Wright & Jerry Barker, 2023. "Opportunities for moderate-range electric vehicles using sustainable sodium-ion batteries," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 8(3), pages 215-218, March.
    5. Bertha Maya Sopha & Dwi Megah Purnamasari & Sholeh Ma’mun, 2022. "Barriers and Enablers of Circular Economy Implementation for Electric-Vehicle Batteries: From Systematic Literature Review to Conceptual Framework," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-23, May.
    6. Gu, Huaying & Liu, Zhixue & Qing, Qiankai, 2017. "Optimal electric vehicle production strategy under subsidy and battery recycling," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 579-589.
    7. Luigi Toro & Emanuela Moscardini & Ludovica Baldassari & Flavia Forte & Ilario Falcone & Jacopo Coletta & Lorenzo Toro, 2023. "A Systematic Review of Battery Recycling Technologies: Advances, Challenges, and Future Prospects," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(18), pages 1-24, September.
    8. Gavin Harper & Roberto Sommerville & Emma Kendrick & Laura Driscoll & Peter Slater & Rustam Stolkin & Allan Walton & Paul Christensen & Oliver Heidrich & Simon Lambert & Andrew Abbott & Karl Ryder & L, 2019. "Recycling lithium-ion batteries from electric vehicles," Nature, Nature, vol. 575(7781), pages 75-86, November.
    9. Jannesar Niri, Anahita & Poelzer, Gregory A. & Zhang, Steven E. & Rosenkranz, Jan & Pettersson, Maria & Ghorbani, Yousef, 2024. "Sustainability challenges throughout the electric vehicle battery value chain," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 191(C).
    10. Joris Baars & Teresa Domenech & Raimund Bleischwitz & Hans Eric Melin & Oliver Heidrich, 2021. "Circular economy strategies for electric vehicle batteries reduce reliance on raw materials," Nature Sustainability, Nature, vol. 4(1), pages 71-79, January.
    11. Ma, Tian & Zhang, Qi & Tang, Yanyan & Liu, Boyu & Li, Yan & Wang, Lu, 2024. "A review on the industrial chain of recycling critical metals from electric vehicle batteries: Current status, challenges, and policy recommendations," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 204(C).
    12. Gu, Xubo & Bai, Hanyu & Cui, Xiaofan & Zhu, Juner & Zhuang, Weichao & Li, Zhaojian & Hu, Xiaosong & Song, Ziyou, 2024. "Challenges and opportunities for second-life batteries: Key technologies and economy," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 192(C).
    13. Hridoy Roy & Bimol Nath Roy & Md. Hasanuzzaman & Md. Shahinoor Islam & Ayman S. Abdel-Khalik & Mostaf S. Hamad & Shehab Ahmed, 2022. "Global Advancements and Current Challenges of Electric Vehicle Batteries and Their Prospects: A Comprehensive Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(24), pages 1-30, December.
    14. F. Degen & M. Winter & D. Bendig & J. Tübke, 2023. "Energy consumption of current and future production of lithium-ion and post lithium-ion battery cells," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 8(11), pages 1284-1295, November.
    15. Balali, Amirhossein & Yunusa-Kaltungo, Akilu & Edwards, Rodger, 2023. "A systematic review of passive energy consumption optimisation strategy selection for buildings through multiple criteria decision-making techniques," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 171(C).
    16. Yash Kotak & Carlos Marchante Fernández & Lluc Canals Casals & Bhavya Satishbhai Kotak & Daniel Koch & Christian Geisbauer & Lluís Trilla & Alberto Gómez-Núñez & Hans-Georg Schweiger, 2021. "End of Electric Vehicle Batteries: Reuse vs. Recycle," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(8), pages 1-15, April.
    17. Gutsch, Moritz & Leker, Jens, 2024. "Costs, carbon footprint, and environmental impacts of lithium-ion batteries – From cathode active material synthesis to cell manufacturing and recycling," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 353(PB).
    18. Woeste, Richard & Drude, Emanuel-Sebastian & Vrucak, Dzeneta & Klöckner, Kai & Rombach, Elinor & Letmathe, Peter & Friedrich, Bernd, 2024. "A techno-economic assessment of two recycling processes for black mass from end-of-life lithium-ion batteries," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 361(C).
    19. Yijiao Wang & Guoguang Zhou & Ting Li & Xiao Wei, 2019. "Comprehensive Evaluation of the Sustainable Development of Battery Electric Vehicles in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(20), pages 1-27, October.
    20. Anqi Zeng & Wu Chen & Kasper Dalgas Rasmussen & Xuehong Zhu & Maren Lundhaug & Daniel B. Müller & Juan Tan & Jakob K. Keiding & Litao Liu & Tao Dai & Anjian Wang & Gang Liu, 2022. "Battery technology and recycling alone will not save the electric mobility transition from future cobalt shortages," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-11, December.
    21. Li, Lin & Dababneh, Fadwa & Zhao, Jing, 2018. "Cost-effective supply chain for electric vehicle battery remanufacturing," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 226(C), pages 277-286.
    22. Picatoste, Aitor & Justel, Daniel & Mendoza, Joan Manuel F., 2022. "Circularity and life cycle environmental impact assessment of batteries for electric vehicles: Industrial challenges, best practices and research guidelines," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 169(C).
    23. Alexandre Beaudet & François Larouche & Kamyab Amouzegar & Patrick Bouchard & Karim Zaghib, 2020. "Key Challenges and Opportunities for Recycling Electric Vehicle Battery Materials," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(14), pages 1-12, July.
    24. Jani Das & Andrew Kleiman & Atta Ur Rehman & Rahul Verma & Michael H. Young, 2024. "The Cobalt Supply Chain and Environmental Life Cycle Impacts of Lithium-Ion Battery Energy Storage Systems," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(5), pages 1-28, February.
    25. Antônio Rufino Júnior, Carlos & Sanseverino, Eleonora Riva & Gallo, Pierluigi & Koch, Daniel & Schweiger, Hans-Georg & Zanin, Hudson, 2022. "Blockchain review for battery supply chain monitoring and battery trading," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    26. Zhang, Qi & Tang, Yanyan & Bunn, Derek & Li, Hailong & Li, Yaoming, 2021. "Comparative evaluation and policy analysis for recycling retired EV batteries with different collection modes," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 303(C).
    27. E. Petavratzi & D. Sanchez-Lopez & A. Hughes & J. Stacey & J. Ford & A. Butcher, 2022. "The impacts of environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues in achieving sustainable lithium supply in the Lithium Triangle," Mineral Economics, Springer;Raw Materials Group (RMG);Luleå University of Technology, vol. 35(3), pages 673-699, December.
    28. Eglantina Hysa & Alba Kruja & Naqeeb Ur Rehman & Rafael Laurenti, 2020. "Circular Economy Innovation and Environmental Sustainability Impact on Economic Growth: An Integrated Model for Sustainable Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-16, June.
    29. Mu, Dong & Ren, Huanyu & Wang, Chao & Yue, Xiongping & Du, Jianbang & Ghadimi, Pezhman, 2023. "Structural characteristics and disruption ripple effect in a meso-level electric vehicle Lithium-ion battery supply chain network," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    30. Christensen, Paul A. & Anderson, Paul A. & Harper, Gavin D.J. & Lambert, Simon M. & Mrozik, Wojciech & Rajaeifar, Mohammad Ali & Wise, Malcolm S. & Heidrich, Oliver, 2021. "Risk management over the life cycle of lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 148(C).
    31. Sina Abbasi & Ilias Vlachos & Ali Samadzadeh & Shayan Etemadifar & Mohamad Afshar & Mohsen Amra, 2024. "Modelling a Logistics and Financial Supply Chain Network during the COVID-19 Era," Logistics, MDPI, vol. 8(1), pages 1-21, March.
    32. Liu, Wei & Li, Xin & Liu, Chunyan & Wang, Minxi & Liu, Litao, 2023. "Resilience assessment of the cobalt supply chain in China under the impact of electric vehicles and geopolitical supply risks," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    33. Hu, Xiaoqian & Wang, Chao & Lim, Ming K. & Chen, Wei-Qiang & Teng, Limin & Wang, Peng & Wang, Heming & Zhang, Chao & Yao, Cuiyou & Ghadimi, Pezhman, 2023. "Critical systemic risk sources in global lithium-ion battery supply networks: Static and dynamic network perspectives," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 173(C).
    34. Richa, Kirti & Babbitt, Callie W. & Gaustad, Gabrielle & Wang, Xue, 2014. "A future perspective on lithium-ion battery waste flows from electric vehicles," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 63-76.
    35. Arno Kwade & Wolfgang Haselrieder & Ruben Leithoff & Armin Modlinger & Franz Dietrich & Klaus Droeder, 2018. "Current status and challenges for automotive battery production technologies," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 3(4), pages 290-300, April.
    36. Anthony L. Cheng & Erica R. H. Fuchs & Valerie J. Karplus & Jeremy J. Michalek, 2024. "Electric vehicle battery chemistry affects supply chain disruption vulnerabilities," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-11, December.
    37. Wang, Lei & Wang, Xiang & Yang, Wenxian, 2020. "Optimal design of electric vehicle battery recycling network – From the perspective of electric vehicle manufacturers," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 275(C).
    38. Jay N. Meegoda & Sarvagna Malladi & Isabel C. Zayas, 2022. "End-of-Life Management of Electric Vehicle Lithium-Ion Batteries in the United States," Clean Technol., MDPI, vol. 4(4), pages 1-13, November.
    39. Ren, Zhijun & Li, Huajie & Yan, Wenyi & Lv, Weiguang & Zhang, Guangming & Lv, Longyi & Sun, Li & Sun, Zhi & Gao, Wenfang, 2023. "Comprehensive evaluation on production and recycling of lithium-ion batteries: A critical review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 185(C).
    40. Pranjal Barman & Lachit Dutta & Brian Azzopardi, 2023. "Electric Vehicle Battery Supply Chain and Critical Materials: A Brief Survey of State of the Art," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(8), pages 1-23, April.
    41. Fabian Duffner & Niklas Kronemeyer & Jens Tübke & Jens Leker & Martin Winter & Richard Schmuch, 2021. "Post-lithium-ion battery cell production and its compatibility with lithium-ion cell production infrastructure," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 6(2), pages 123-134, February.
    42. Tang, Yanyan & Zhang, Qi & Li, Yaoming & Li, Hailong & Pan, Xunzhang & Mclellan, Benjamin, 2019. "The social-economic-environmental impacts of recycling retired EV batteries under reward-penalty mechanism," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 251(C), pages 1-1.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Luo, Jiaqi & Yang, Ying & Jiang, Yan, 2025. "Assessing the antecedents, processes, and consequences of sustainable electric vehicle battery recycling: A systematic literature review," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 282(C).
    2. Zhu, He & Hu, Jiayao & Yang, Ying, 2025. "Towards a circular supply chain for retired electric vehicle batteries: A systematic literature review," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 282(C).
    3. Wesselkämper, Jannis & Dahrendorf, Laureen & Mauler, Lukas & Lux, Simon & von Delft, Stephan, 2024. "Towards circular battery supply chains: Strategies to reduce material demand and the impact on mining and recycling," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    4. Ma, Tian & Zhang, Qi & Tang, Yanyan & Liu, Boyu & Li, Yan & Wang, Lu, 2024. "A review on the industrial chain of recycling critical metals from electric vehicle batteries: Current status, challenges, and policy recommendations," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 204(C).
    5. Lander, Laura & Tagnon, Chris & Nguyen-Tien, Viet & Kendrick, Emma & Elliott, Robert J.R. & Abbott, Andrew P. & Edge, Jacqueline S. & Offer, Gregory J., 2023. "Breaking it down: A techno-economic assessment of the impact of battery pack design on disassembly costs," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 331(C).
    6. Hao Hao & Wenxian Xu & Fangfang Wei & Chuanliang Wu & Zhaoran Xu, 2022. "Reward–Penalty vs. Deposit–Refund: Government Incentive Mechanisms for EV Battery Recycling," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-18, September.
    7. Yongyou Nie & Yuhan Wang & Lu Li & Haolan Liao, 2023. "Literature Review on Power Battery Echelon Reuse and Recycling from a Circular Economy Perspective," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(5), pages 1-28, February.
    8. Debnath, Ramit & Bardhan, Ronita & Reiner, David M. & Miller, J.R., 2021. "Political, economic, social, technological, legal and environmental dimensions of electric vehicle adoption in the United States: A social-media interaction analysis," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 152(C).
    9. Claudiu Vasile Kifor & Niculina Alexandra Grigore, 2023. "Circular Economy Approaches for Electrical and Conventional Vehicles," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-28, April.
    10. Guohao Li & Tao Wang, 2022. "Long-Term Leases vs. One-Off Purchases: Game Analysis on Battery Swapping Mode Considering Cascade Utilization and Power Structure," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(24), pages 1-28, December.
    11. Wang, Yitong & Fan, Ruguo & Chen, Rongkai & Xie, Xiao & Ke, Can, 2025. "Exploring the coevolution dynamics of residents and recyclers in electric vehicle battery recycling decisions on the two-layer heterogeneous complex networks," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 382(C).
    12. Anna Luiza Santos & Wellington Alves & Paula Ferreira, 2025. "Challenges Faced by Lithium-Ion Batteries in Effective Waste Management," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-24, March.
    13. Feng, Jianghong & Ning, Yu & Wang, Zhaohua & Li, Guo & Xiu Xu, Su, 2024. "ChatGPT-enabled two-stage auctions for electric vehicle battery recycling," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 183(C).
    14. Vimal K. E. K. & Jayakrishna Kandasamy & Vezhavendhan R. & Bostine Bose & Arun Kumar Menon & Sivakumar K., 2024. "Digital technology adoption model for electric vehicle battery recycling supply chain - an influential relationship mapping," Operations Management Research, Springer, vol. 17(4), pages 1469-1508, December.
    15. Gutsch, Moritz & Leker, Jens, 2024. "Costs, carbon footprint, and environmental impacts of lithium-ion batteries – From cathode active material synthesis to cell manufacturing and recycling," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 353(PB).
    16. Dan Su & Yu Mei & Tongchao Liu & Khalil Amine, 2025. "Global Regulations for Sustainable Battery Recycling: Challenges and Opportunities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-30, March.
    17. Haghani, Milad & Ghaderi, Hadi & Hensher, David, 2024. "Hidden effects and externalities of electric vehicles," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 194(C).
    18. Zhou, Yuekuan, 2024. "Lifecycle battery carbon footprint analysis for battery sustainability with energy digitalization and artificial intelligence," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 371(C).
    19. Peng Xing & Junzhu Yao, 2022. "Power Battery Echelon Utilization and Recycling Strategy for New Energy Vehicles Based on Blockchain Technology," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-21, September.
    20. Jian-fei, Li & Han, Peng & Xiao-yu, Luo, 2024. "A predictive model for the security and stability of the lithium-ion battery industry chain based on price modal combinations," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:rensus:v:216:y:2025:i:c:s1364032125003442. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/600126/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.