Coordination of European Research on Industrial Safety towards Smart and Sustainable Growth
Nano-SaNE
Safety evaluation of nanomaterials in novel EES materials and LIBs
The rapid growth of electrical energy storage, particularly lithium-ion batteries, is accelerating the introduction of advanced materials and nanomaterials in electrodes and cell components to improve performance. In addition to intentionally engineered nanomaterials, nanoparticles can also be generated in situ through chemical and electrochemical interactions during battery operation and, to an even larger extent, during degradation and failure processes such as thermal runaway. These nano-sized species may be released during manufacturing, use, abuse conditions, fires, recycling and end-of-life treatment, creating potential occupational and environmental exposure pathways. Current safety approaches for LIBs focus primarily on thermal and fire hazards, while the presence, transformation and potential toxicity of nanomaterials and nanoparticles are less systematically characterised. There is a need to link material characterisation with thermal runaway behaviour and to evaluate toxicological and ecotoxicological implications of nanoscale releases under realistic scenarios. Nano-SaNE addresses this gap by combining nanomaterial characterisation, thermal abuse testing and (eco)toxicological assessment to support safer design and management of next-generation LIBs containing advanced nanomaterials.
The project investigates which nanomaterials are present in selected lithium-ion cells, both as engineered components and as particles formed through electrochemical interactions, and how these species can be identified and characterised across relevant size ranges. It examines whether cells containing nanomaterials show different thermal runaway initiation and propagation behaviour compared to comparable cells without nanomaterials, including under controlled thermal abuse tests. The project explores how nanoparticle formation and release may evolve during degradation and during uncontrolled thermal reactions, and how results from single-cell studies can be scaled up to more representative experiments. A further research question concerns the environmental persistence and biological effects of selected nanomaterials and nanoparticles, including biodegradability, ecotoxicity and toxicology, and how these hazards relate to realistic exposure scenarios. Finally, the project investigates how the combined evidence can inform recommendations for safer materials selection, battery design and risk management across the LIB life cycle.
Nano-SaNE will deliver a state-of-the-art and evidence-based characterisation of nanomaterials used in selected lithium-ion cells, including analytical data on morphology, composition and particle size distributions. The project will produce comparative experimental results on thermal runaway behaviour of cells with and without nanomaterials, including single-cell thermal abuse testing and scaled-up experiments to better represent real scenarios. It will generate datasets on nanoparticle formation, transformation and potential release during thermal runaway and degradation, supporting improved understanding of combined fire and particulate hazards. The project will deliver ecotoxicity and toxicology evidence for selected materials, including biodegradability and short-term environmental hazard testing following relevant guidelines. Outputs will include methodological protocols, cross-laboratory reproducibility elements, and recommendations to support safer design, testing and end-of-life management of LIBs containing advanced nanomaterials.
The project is organised into five work packages. - WP1 – State of the art and sample selection: reviews nanomaterials used in LIBs and selects and procures representative cell samples for study. - WP2 – Nanomaterials characterisation in cells: characterises nanomaterials and nanoparticles within LIB components using complementary analytical techniques. - WP3 – Thermal runaway characterisation at single-cell level: performs thermal abuse tests to quantify thermal runaway behaviour and associated phenomena in selected cells. - WP4 – Scale-up of thermal runaway experiments: extends and validates findings through more representative experimental configurations to better capture real-world behaviour. - WP5 – Ecotoxicity and toxicology evaluation: assesses biodegradability and (eco)toxicological effects of selected nanomaterials and nanoparticles relevant to potential releases.