By 2030, as many as 12 million metric tons of electric and hybrid vehicle batteries could reach the end of their first useful life worldwide each year.
Now, NJIT researchers are helping New Jersey become the first state to answer a question: How can retired electric vehicle batteries be safely managed at scale?
A new grant, awarded to NJIT by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, will fund the first comprehensive assessment of the infrastructure needed to support the state’s Electric and Hybrid Vehicle Battery Management Act — the nation’s first to require battery producers to take responsibility for their products at the end of their useful lives.
Kevin Belfield, distinguished professor of chemistry and dean of NJIT’s Jordan Hu College of Sciences and Liberal Arts, will lead a statewide effort with Zeyuan Qiu, professor of environmental science and chair of the university’s Department of Chemistry and Environmental Science.
“Passing the Electric and Hybrid Vehicle Battery Management Act established a legal mandate for extended producer responsibility, but no statewide infrastructure currently exists to support it,” said Belfield, a fellow of the American Chemical Society. “This study bridges the gap between policy creation and practical execution before millions of EV batteries reach end-of-life. It will provide New Jersey an operational roadmap while offering other states a national model.”
The challenge is determining what systems and infrastructure are needed to make that model work as electric vehicle adoption continues to grow, with an estimated 33 million electric vehicles on U.S. roads by 2030, according to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
To address it, the NJIT team will map the infrastructure needed to support battery management across the state and region, identifying existing facilities and potential locations for battery collection, storage, dismantling, repurposing and recycling — and showing where New Jersey has the biggest gaps.
“New Jersey currently lacks a clear blueprint for managing spent propulsion batteries,” Belfield said. “By the end of this study, the state will have a preliminary infrastructure framework outlining how batteries move through collection, testing, reuse and recycling.
“It will also have a comprehensive geospatial database mapping potential handling facilities across New Jersey and the Northeast, along with an active, multi-sector Stakeholder Alliance Group linking government agencies, battery producers, recyclers and community organizations.”
Many existing waste and recycling facilities were not designed to handle large volumes of lithium-ion batteries as electric vehicle adoption increases.
While lithium-ion batteries contain valuable critical minerals that can be recovered and reused — including cobalt and nickel — they create serious fire hazards and cause soil and water contamination when damaged, improperly handled or mixed into conventional waste.
Recent battery-related fires at waste and recycling facilities throughout the state, including a two-alarm fire at the EMR Scrap Metal Junkyard in Camden earlier this year, have underscored the need for a new way forward.
“Fires like the one at the EMR facility in Camden highlight the serious safety hazards of lithium-ion batteries entering conventional waste streams,” said Belfield. “They also point to the need for specialized facilities, clear handling protocols and better systems for sorting and managing these batteries.”
The team plans to examine where future battery-management facilities should be located and assess their potential impacts on New Jersey's overburdened communities, as defined by the state's Environmental Justice Law.
The analysis will also look at the economic opportunities that could come with building a battery recovery network in New Jersey — including new businesses and jobs.
“Despite the significant economic potential and national security interest in critical minerals, EV battery material recovery, recycling and reuse should be done responsibly to protect New Jersey communities and the soil, water, air and other natural resources around them,” said Qiu, a fellow of the Soil and Water Conservation Society.
The project brings together partners from academia, industry, government, nonprofit organizations and communities to help develop the roadmap.
“Active participation from stakeholders is critical to the success of the project,” said Qiu.
The team will host statewide workshops and create an online resource where people can explore the project’s findings through interactive maps and community feedback. The maps will help show where battery-management facilities are located or could be developed, and how those sites relate to communities across New Jersey and the region.
The project also creates opportunities for NJIT students.
Graduate and undergraduate students will contribute through research and coursework, gaining hands-on experience in an emerging field at the intersection of environmental science, engineering and public policy.
The work extends an NSF-supported effort led by Belfield and Qiu to bring chemistry, sustainability and the circular economy into graduate education — giving students a direct line from the classroom to policy discussions beyond campus.
By the end of 2027, the team will deliver a statewide needs assessment and recommendations designed to support implementation of New Jersey's battery management law — and, Belfield hopes, lay the groundwork for something bigger.
“In five to 10 years, we see success as a seamless circular battery economy where zero EV batteries end up in standard scrap yards or landfills,” Belfield said. “Other states can adopt New Jersey's model to enforce extended producer responsibility while safeguarding public health and growing green industries.”
