Comments on: Tesla Home Battery is Not Anything Like What the Leaks Said

By: lenrosen4

Fri, 01 May 2015 20:48:00 +0000

In reply to Don Kerr.

Disposing of lithium will present a future problem. We don’t know what the rated cycles are for the Powerwall. How many recharges before the batteries lose their ability to hold a charge? Tesla will have to address these issues and develop a recycling system which hopefully reprocesses the lithium for re-use.

But my best guess is that lithium will be replaced by aluminum and sulphur-based battery technology within the next 3 to 5 years. These materials would be less of an environmental issue than lithium.

]]>

By: lenrosen4

Fri, 01 May 2015 19:53:00 +0000

In reply to steve papagiannis.

I can see if adopted by utilities as a service to customers that load leveling would be a very desirable feature.

]]>

By: steve papagiannis

Fri, 01 May 2015 17:37:00 +0000

Though this is set up for solar use, I think that an equally valuable use of these batteries would be in load leveling. This is a topic that you’ve discussed before Len, but with this price point, it could easily fit into a homeowner budget and draw power at low cost times, for use in high cost times. It might even be in the local utilities interest to deploy these to their customers.

As a bonus, it also adds a bit of backup in the event of power outages.

]]>

By: Don Kerr

Fri, 01 May 2015 16:59:00 +0000

Hi Len,
I am curious. While the benefit of the technology from an alternative, renewable energy perspective is clear what about the implications of the impact of lithium mining and eventual disposal on the environment?

]]>