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Blockchain review for battery supply chain monitoring and battery trading
Article  in  Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews · April 2022
DOI: 10.1016/j.rser.2022.112078
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Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 157 (2022) 112078
1364-0321/© 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Blockchain review for battery supply chain monitoring and battery trading
Carlos Antônio Rufino Júnior a,d
, Eleonora Riva Sanseverino b
, Pierluigi Gallo b,c
, Daniel Koch d
,
Hans-Georg Schweiger d
, Hudson Zanin a,*
a
University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Brazil
b
University of Palermo (UNIPA), Italy
c
Consorzio Nazionale Interuniversitario per le Telecomunicazioni (CNIT), Italy
d
Technische Hoschule Ingolstadt (THI), CARISSMA Institute of Electric, Connected and Secure Mobility (C-ECOS), Germany
A R T I C L E I N F O
Keywords:
Second use
Reuse
Lithium-ion batteries
Second-life batteries
Blockchain
Electric vehicles
Supply chain
A B S T R A C T
The use of technologies such as Internet of Things (IoT), data processing and blockchain have allowed companies
to serve their customers with better quality, efficiency, reliability and in the shortest possible time. The growing
adoption of electric vehicles on the market has increased the demand for batteries that may have numerous
manufacturers. Life expectancy is affected on manufacture, but also on operational conditions. A large number of
parameters have a role on battery’s health and thousands of data need to be evaluated and combined. The
present work investigates the scenario of the battery industry in order to implement a blockchain-based platform
for the supply chain implementation thus allowing a better control on performance of batteries and environ
mental impact. To achieve this goal, the authors carried out a systematic review with the following steps:
identification of relevant studies, evaluation and summary of similar studies, comparison and extraction of data
from the papers. The main motivation of this work is the use of the literature for justifying the use of the
blockchain technology to track batteries and for identifying the main challenges in the related markets that can
be addressed by this technology. The results of this systematic review show that the development of a blockchain-
based platform for battery tracking will allow for greater transparency across the entire supply chain: production,
reuse, recycling, disposal. Trasparency and traceability prevent clandestine markets, misuse and release of
pollutants. Adressing these topics forsters the successful implemention of electric vehicles in the market.
1. Introduction
The increase in sales of Electric Vehicles (EVs) boosted the produc
tion of Lithium-Ion Batteries (LIBs), which is the technology adopted in
this type of vehicles because it provides light storage systems with high
energy density and high power density [1–4]. The growing adoption of
EVs increases the concern about raw materials in LIBs. In particular,
with the lithium, nickel, aluminum, manganese, copper, graphite and
cobalt that are available in few regions of the planet, the LIB has a
variable price according to its availability and location of raw materials
as their mining has a significant environmental impact. The increase in
demand for this type of materials due to the increase in demand for LIBs
can lead to an inflation in the price of these minerals and EV batteries,
thus reducing the wider adoption EVs that are a zero emissions tech
nology for mobility [2].
Another concern of society, researchers and the productive sector
refers to the large number of batteries that will reach the end of their
useful life and can have three final destinations: (i) disposal in landfills
or incineration, (ii) reuse and (iii) recycling [5]. Unfortunately, most
batteries are still disposed of in landfills due to the recycling process, at
the current stage of maturation, still not being able to process a large
volume of LIBs. These industries are located in a few countries, namely
they are not geographically distributed, which implies high transport
costs and legal restrictions. Recycling consists of mining battery com
ponents and can reduce the demand for raw materials used in LIBs.
However, recycling is economically viable only if the value of recovered
materials is greater than or equal to the cost for extracting new chemical
components [2]. One option is the reuse of EV batteries in secondary
applications such as peak shaving, charging infrastructure, integration
with renewable energy generation systems, etc.
One of the most promising secondary applications is the integration
of second-life batteries with renewable energy generation systems [6].
Second-life batteries can make these systems cheaper, thus increasing
the penetration of clean and renewable energy generation systems in the
market, promoting the decarbonization of the energy matrix of
* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: hzanin@unicamp.br (H. Zanin).
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/rser
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2022.112078
Received 26 May 2021; Received in revised form 30 December 2021; Accepted 3 January 2022

2
countries. Second-life batteries when integrated with renewable energy
generation systems can reduce the intermittency of these systems and
allow excess energy to be stored to be consumed at times of low energy
generation. In addition, second-life batteries can be very useful to enable
powering in remote areas [4,7]. These batteries can also be integrated
into EV charging stations, helping to improve the charging infrastruc
ture of these vehicles [8].
This shows that the supply chain of batteries can also be circular, as
the customer can return the product so that it can be reused or recycled.
Several companies have focused efforts to make supply chain manage
ment easier and less complex. For players in the battery market, it is
essential to know the origin and history of this product so that it is
possible to convert this data into knowledge, make estimates, forecasts
and classify batteries in different levels of quality.
Proper supply chain management reduces the number of frauds, re
duces indirect costs, assists in decision making, increases the number of
sales and reduces the complexity of the manufacturing process. In the
context of the battery market, tracking batteries along the supply chain
is important to ensure that all market players are aware of battery
chemistry, authenticity, performance, life expectancy and other infor
mation that may be important for certain regulatory frameworks.
Technologies aiming to solve the problems of industries are
emerging, among them, blockchain technology aims at disrupting
different areas of industrial and social processes by providing a
distributed, immutable and validated repository of data, capable of
tracking the entire supply chain. With the blockchain, data coming from
sensors will be collected for monitoring products and processes in near
real time. Locations, timestamps, voltages, currents, temperatures,
among other data, will be stored through a distributed, immutable and
safe technology that guarantees a distributed validation of incoming
data, with procedures that are agreed by the involved actors. Many
actors are involved in the battery market including battery manufac
turers, system integrators, users, companies specialized in applications
for second life, providers of raw and recycled materials, public control
bodies, etc. Moreover, such actors have contrasting interests, may
belong to different countries being subject to heterogeneous regulation
frameworks. Under this light, the blockchain shows up as a powerful tool
for managing digital identities of batteries and track their lifecycle. From
extraction of raw materials, through the production, till the use of bat
teries in electric traction, the blockchain will track and trace the
evolution of these important value, including their second-lives, their
recycling and disposal [9]. Blockchain is the perfect technology for
tracking and tracing values and valuable goods, in the case of batteries
this value is threefold: the intrinsic value of batteries and their rare
components and minerals, the value of trusted data associated with
battery life, the environmental value in preserving release of pollutants.
The parts that make up batteries that are mainly electrolytes, cells
and cell separators have ores in their composition that are valuable, such
as: lithium (Li), cobalt (Co), nickel (Ni), aluminum (Al), copper (Cu),
silicon (Si), zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn), graphite (C*) [10–12]. The in
crease in the number of batteries available in the coming years increases
the concern about the depletion of raw materials, especially with lithium
(Li), cobalt (Co), silicon (Si) and graphite (C*).
There is a great deal of concern about environmental impacts, legal
issues and the cost of extracting and processing raw materials from LIBs.
The tracking of the raw materials present in the batteries can help to
prevent the ores that make up the batteries from being extracted and
discarded in clandestine places, with precarious sanitary conditions for
workers, avoid child labor, exposure of operators to heavy metals,
contamination of the fauna and flora with heavy chemical materials,
avoid the disposal of batteries in inappropriate places and avoid the
exposure of operators to workplaces suitable for landslides [13]. Second
use and recycling of batteries can contribute to reducing the demand for
primary raw materials [13].
Blockchain technology is very suitable for solving problems in which
there are contrasting interests between the different companies involved
in the ecosystem. Through this technology, it is possible to create
intelligent and immutable contracts that describe business rules in order
to ensure more security and transparency for the entire supply chain.
This study is important to identify how blockchain technology can be
applied to track batteries along their supply chain, enabling the solution
of several problems in the battery market.
In addition to the social and environmental conditions that impose
challenges to the extraction of raw materials from LIB. There are also
issues of an economic and political nature that are interrelated. This
makes the price of these raw materials sensitive to trade barriers and
dependent on the policies of the countries that dominate the extraction
of these raw materials which produces a great fluctuation in the price of
these chemical components of batteries [14]. It is also important to
mention that some minerals such as cobalt, lithium and graphite are
concentrated in a few countries, which makes several countries depen
dent on imports of these minerals [12,13].
The battery production process requires batteries to be produced in a
clean room in order to ensure that their chemical components are not
contaminated with impurities. Contamination of the battery’s chemical
components with impurities compromises the safety and quality of the
battery. This contamination can contaminate a single battery or a spe
cific batch of batteries and compromise their safety, quality and per
formance. Therefore, the battery life is strongly influenced, among other
things, by the quality of the raw material used [15]. Blockchain tech
nology can be applied to a tracking system that facilitates the recall of
one or more defective batteries. Therefore, the efforts dedicated to the
tracking of raw materials is due to the need to guarantee the quality and
performance of the batteries, as well as reducing the dependence on raw
materials from other countries, putting the circular economy into
practice in an effective way, recovering the values of the residues and,
allowing the companies to meet the norms and public policies [14–16].
One of the main motivations for this work is the need to understand
how battery tracking using a blockchain-based platform can help com
panies meet technical standards and legislation. This is relevant because
the Battery Directive [17–20] states that as of June 1, 2024 only bat
teries with a carbon footprint claim can be placed on the market.
Another point of the directive is the increase in the battery collection
rate, which increased from 45% to 65% in 2025 and 70% in 2030 [17].
This directive also establishes other points such as the need to declare
the content of cobalt, lead, lithium and nickel present in batteries, as
Table of abbreviation
API Application Programming Interface
B2C Business-to-Customer
B2B Business-to-Business
BMS Battery Management System
EPROM Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory
ETS Emission Trading System
EV Electric Vehicle
HDQ High-speed Data Queue
IEEE Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
KPI Key Performance Indicator
LIB Lithium-Ion Battery
OEM Original Equipment Manufacturer
RFID Radio Frequency Identification
RUL Remaining Useful Life
SoAP State-of-Available-Power
SoC State of Charge
SoH State of Health
UNFCCC United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change
WLAN Wireless Local Area Network
C. Antônio Rufino Júnior et al.

3
well as the minimum recycled content of these metals in the battery
[17]. To meet this directive and other regulations, a literature review is
needed to learn about the proposed blockchain-based systems and how
these systems can help companies meet the rules and regulations.
There is also a need to justify the use of blockchain technology in
different scenarios in the battery market, as this technology still has a
high cost when compared to other technologies on the market. Investi
gating the possibility of developing a blockchain-based platform is
essential to understand how this technology can solve problems, such as:
• Tracking the origin and quality of the raw material in order to avoid
its scarcity, avoid price inflation and guarantee the expected degree
of purity;
• Ensure that the batteries have the performance, safety and quality
expected for the application;
• Solve problems in scenarios where there are contrasting interests
between different parts of the battery ecosystem;
• Allow that all battery ecosystem participants to know the battery
history;
• Avoid orphan batteries (without a legal person responsible for their
correct disposal and recycling);
• Understanding how a blockchain-based platform can help reduce
uncertainty and define who will be the manufacturer, user and owner
of the battery at different stages of its useful life;
• Ensure that the circularity of the supply chain and that the
manufacturing, use, reuse and recycling processes have the desired
minimum efficiency.
Blockchain technology is still recent and therefore, few works report
the use of this technology applied to battery tracking. This paper aims to
fill several gaps in the literature, the main one being the justification for
the use of blockchain technology to track batteries. That’s because there
are several other types of databases that can be used. However, block
chain technology has numerous advantages such as safety, authenticity,
transparency and immutability that need to be investigated with a focus
on solving known problems in the battery market. Another gap in the
literature is the fact that there are few studies that study the ways of
identifying batteries at different stages of their life (from manufacture to
recycling). This systematic review investigates the main works that
address the different types of unique battery identification.
Despite the growing number of blockchain publications in recent
years, the technology is still new and unknown to society and therefore,
there are still some questions that need to be answered such as:
1. How can blockchain manage the battery supply chain?
2. What are the advantages and disadvantages of using a secure,
immutable and decentralized technology to monitor the battery
supply chain?
3. How can a blockchain-based platform help companies increase their
revenue?
In view of the need to answer these questions, this paper aims to
conduct a systematic review to identify the main reasons for imple
menting a blockchain-based platform to track the battery supply chain
and for battery electronic commerce. The article is divided into the
following sections: Section II presents the methodology adopted in the
systematic review. Section III presents the production process for
lithium-ion batteries. Section IV presents the definition of blockchain
technology and the main advantages of this technology for battery
tracking. Finally, the conclusion is discussed in Section V.
2. Method
Conducting a systematic review allows to make the research repro
ducible. For this reason, strict protocols are followed to survey the most
relevant studies, map and evaluate the works in the literature. The steps
(see Fig. 1) that have been followed to prepare this systematic review are
here listed: (i) identification of relevant studies, (ii) selection of studies,
(iii) evaluation and summary of similar studies and, (iv) comparison and
extraction of data from papers.
The first stage of this research is planning. In this step, the protocol is
defined where the main question and the secondary questions that will
be answered during the study are defined. The second stage of the
research is to identify the works. The works were searched through the
execution of strings in the search space for the database of articles and
patents, which are: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
(IEEE), Web of Science, Springer, Elsevier, Scopus, Scielo, Science Direct
and Oxford Press Journal. The choice of these databases for the search
has been done because they have papers written in English, they allow
the export of articles in BibTex format and have quality papers that are
reviewed by peers in the area of computing, engineering and
sustainability.
The execution of strings in the search space of the databases was
performed by combining and interconnecting the special AND and OR
operators to execute the following strings: “Blockchain & EV Batteries”,
“Blockchain & Supply Chain”, “Second-life Batteries & Blockchain”,
“Smart-Contracts & Batteries”, “Blockchain & Electric Vehicle”. After
the execution of the strings and identification of the works, the studies
were selected according to the criteria of inclusion and exclusion criteria
that are presented in Table 1.
A general analysis of the research area can be obtained by analyzing
the number of publications each year for each of the keywords adopted
as a search criterion in this systematic review, as shown in Fig. 2. Note
from Fig. 2 in (a) that the number of publications relating blockchain to
EV batteries has grown considerably in recent years. Fig. 2 in (b) shows
that in the last few years the number of works applying blockchain
technology in the supply chain area is increasing and there is a high
number of works published in recent years. In (c) and (d) it is possible to
note that there is still a low number of publications that relate block
chain to recycling and reusing batteries, showing that the application of
this technology with a focus on circular battery economy is still an area
that needs to be developed. Finally, in (e) it is possible to notice an
increasing number of publications relating blockchain technology to
EVs.
3. Battery production process
The production of the batteries can be subdivided into the produc
tion of the cell and the production of the module. Cell production can be
divided into the stages of mixing, coating, drying, calendering, slitting,
vacuum drying, separation, stacking/winding, packaging, electrolyte
filling, formation, degassing, high temperature aging, normal tempera
ture aging and, end of life testing.
The battery production process starts with obtaining the raw mate
rials for the batteries that can be obtained by mining, carried out by the
company itself or by partner companies. The raw material mining stage
is more and more regulated and with stricter environmental standards
that raise the companies’ production cost. Battery manufacturers usually
buy raw materials on the stock exchange. The price of these raw mate
rials for batteries is volatile, however, it can remain constant due to
several individual investors and companies that inject a large amount of
money into the market to ensure that raw materials for batteries do not
become scarce in the future. It is expected that in the near future the raw
materials will be negotiated directly between the mining company and
Fig. 1. Flowchart of the methodology adopted in this paper.
Source: Elaborated by the authors.

4
the battery manufacturer, without the need for intermediaries, making it
possible to obtain long-term contracts with pre-defined volumes that
will enable lower prices and better levels of sustainability because there
will be greater control over the extraction of raw materials by regulatory
agencies and battery manufacturers will have the option to buy from
mining companies that have a more sustainable raw material extraction
process.
After obtaining the raw material, the production of the electrodes
begins, which is made from the mixture of the paste, coating,
compression, drying and cutting. The production of the electrode has a
high degree of monitoring complexity because each step has different
execution times. The production of the electrode begins with the pro
duction of a paste that can be obtained from two or more raw materials
and that are mixed using a rotary tool to form a paste. The microstruc
ture of this paste is related to the cell’s performance and, consequently,
it is one of the stages of battery production that must be monitored.
After that, an application tool such as a slit die, scraper blade or
anilox roller can be used to transfer the paste to a sheet. A conductive
network around the particles must be formed by increasing the adhesion
force between the electrode coating, increasing the life of the batteries.
Subsequently, the sheet with this paste goes through a drying, calen
dering, slitting, vacuum drying and separation process. The drying
process aims to provide heat to eliminate the solvent in the form of
steam. This process usually takes place in a dryer equipment that is
composed of several chambers and the chambers have different
Table 1
Inclusion or exclusion criteria for this systematic review.
Inclusion Exclusion
The paper deals with blockchain for
second-life batteries.
Investigators did not have access to the
full text.
The paper describes characteristics of
blockchain-based platforms for second-
life batteries.
The paper does not describe features of
blockchain-based platforms for tracking
and trading second-life batteries.
The paper has information on blockchain-
based platforms for battery swapping
and battery trading.
The paper only describes the technical
characteristics for second-life batteries.
The paper describes blockchain platforms
for tracking the battery supply chain.
The paper has information on monitoring
the supply chain and executing smart
contracts aimed at batteries.
Source: Prepared by the authors.
Fig. 2. Number of publications over the years for each of the keywords adopted in this systematic research.

5
temperatures from each other. Calendering is the process of passing the
copper or aluminum sheet with the material coated in two rolls so that
the material that covers the copper or aluminum sheet is compressed.
This compaction process has an impact on the pore structure and on the
electrochemical performance of the cells. After the calendering process,
the sheets are unloaded statically, cleaned by brush or air flow and cut
using rotary knives. After cutting, the coils are stored in a vacuum oven
where they remain in a drying process for a period of 12–30 h. This
process aims to remove residual moisture and eliminate the solvent from
vapor coils at low temperatures. After this step, the cells are transferred
to a clean room where the separation of the cathode, anode and mem
brane separating the materials from the roll occurs. With the cathode,
anode and membrane separated, stacking of the anode and cathode
sheets begins, which are normally inserted alternately from left to right
in the Z-shaped separator [21].
The packaging of the pouch cells is done by an ultrasonic or laser
welding process. The cell stack is placed in an aluminum package and
sealed gas-tight in three impulse or contact sealing processes. Only one
side of the cell is not sealed so that it can be filled with electrolyte [21].
The electrolyte filling takes place in two sub-processes: filling and
moistening. The electrolyte filling process is carried out using a
high-precision dosing needle under vacuum to transfer the electrolyte to
the cell. After that, a pressure is applied to the cell with inert gas to
activate the capillary effect of the cell and this process is called wetting.
The aluminum package is vacuum-sealed [22].
After the cells are finished, the Battery Management System (BMS) is
inserted in the module and is responsible for controlling the parameters
of the cells avoiding overheating, overcooling, overloading and over-
discharging the cell, ensuring the safety of the battery module.
After the BMS has been inserted in the battery module, the other
parts of the module and the electronic protection circuits are inserted,
thus finalizing the production of the battery module. Before being
delivered to the consumer, the batteries are tested, certified, transported
to the car manufacturer and then inserted into the EV. After reaching the
end of their life in the EVs, the batteries can still be reused, recycled and
the recovered raw material can be re-inserted into the circular chain.
Fig. 3 shows the circular battery chain.
4. Blockchain technology
Blockchain is the system used in bitcoin and cryptocurrency
transactions. Blockchain is a reliable and decentralized technology
based on a chain of blocks that are spread across all nodes in the network
(decentralized), and validated by the network participants themselves -
which are called nodes - and maintain information about all transactions
in an immutable to ensure security. The blocks are organized chrono
logically and a new transaction is connected to the previous transaction
block, this process is called a hash. Blockchain technology has some
advantages, such as [24,25]:
• Decentralization: Information about a new transaction is spread
among several or all participants in the network. The advantage of
this is that a copy of the transaction is stored in all of us, ensuring
transparency and data integrity.
• Immutable data storage: the data stored in the chain are immutable
and permanent, which facilitates the detection of possible frauds,
since to change a given block, it would be necessary to change all the
blocks, which becomes computationally unfeasible.
• All transactions are shared with all users which allows greater
transparency and immutability, consequently increasing security.
• Low cost: as the transactions do not have an intermediary, such as a
bank, the cost to make the transactions is lower.
• Limited Privacy: although all data is shared with all nodes in the
network and is available and visible to them, private blockchains can
be used to limit the scope of the disclosure.
Despite the aforementioned advantages, blockchain technology has
two main disadvantages: scalability and energy consumption. Because
the technology is distributed and decentralized, the time required to
propagate information across all nodes in the network, process and
validate that information depends on the number of nodes, the network
bandwidth, and the storage space. Greater technology adoption and
increased network nodes can increase energy consumption and require
more storage space [24].
It is important to highlight that blockchain technology can
contribute mainly in scenarios in which different actors are involved and
there is no trust in these actors among themselves. These actors can
range from different departments or business units within the same
company to different companies.
The process or service data may or may not be visible to all partici
pants in the network. In most scenarios, companies have no interest in
providing free data to competitors or intermediaries in the business. On
Fig. 3. Closed-loop circle of automotive LIBs.
Source: Adapted from Ref. [23].

6
the other hand, when you use blockchains with permission, not all data
needs to be shared and different scopes of visibility can be defined and
applied even within the consortium.
Anyway, even without involving competitors, sharing a selected
amount of data and validation logic (not all) with other non-profit
agencies (governments, controllers, public agencies, certifiers) is a
benefit for the company and all the actors involved. In fact, blockchain
technology serves both to assign responsibilities and to exonerate them,
for example, to demonstrate that a company is not responsible for
something. Therefore, tracking batteries using blockchain technology
can help resolve various conflicts of interest in the battery supply chain.
4.1. Blockchain for battery tracking
Blockchain technology can be used for tracing the whole supply
chain of a LIB and can thus start registering the provenance of raw
materials and then the manufacturing process, then the shipping and
delivery to the car producer and then the property transfers up to the
marketing, second use and, disposal. Part of this supply chain is devoted
to the marketing of EV batteries in a second life market.
4.1.1. Why is tracking batteries throughout your supply chain important?
There is great concern about the environmental impact expected by
batteries that will reach the end of their useful life, because the demand
for batteries in the world has increased in recent years [26]. It is esti
mated that in 2030 the global demand for batteries will be 1200 GWh
and in 2050 this demand will increase to 3500 GWh [12–14]. The
number of batteries that will reach the end of their useful life can be
greater when considering the high rate of automobile accidents and that
at least 5% of the batteries can be rejected due to quality problems [13].
Some countries have laws that aim to mitigate the environmental
damage caused by batteries at the end of their life and give the producer
the responsibility to monitor the batteries (principle of extended pro
ducer responsibility) throughout their life cycle [18,27].
With the replacement of conventional vehicles by EVs, batteries are
expected to assume the fundamental role to enable urban electro
mobility. These batteries contain several industrial secrets, confidential
data and the main competitive advantages of companies. Batteries are
the key factor of electromobility and will be decisive for a company to
dominate the automotive market. Therefore, there is a concern that
these batteries are adulterated and marketed in clandestine markets,
which could reduce their price and the number of sales of the original
product. In addition, counterfeit batteries pose a risk to people’s safety
and tampering with batteries can make second use and recycling
unviable.
The use of blockchain technology makes the battery supply chain
more transparent so that a unique identifier can be assigned to the
battery allowing the customer, inspection agent, or an authorized
participant in the network, to have access to various information about
that battery, such as, who produced and used this battery. With battery
tracking using a blockchain-based platform, if a battery is discarded in
an inappropriate location, it will be possible to identify the producer and
assign responsibility for environmental damage to it. It will also be
possible to identify the cause and provide elements for attributing re
sponsibility for an accident involving batteries. The consumer or
enforcement agent will also be able to identify how, where and under
what conditions this battery was produced, used and disposed of.
One challenge of battery tracking will be to convince all supply chain
participants to enter data correctly on the blockchain-based tracking
platform. The owner of the EV can play a key role in this data entry,
reporting any event that occurs with the battery. In this way, it will be
possible to have constant communication between the user of the EV and
the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), so that the OEM can
anticipate a demand, offer services, collect a given batch of product in an
easier way, predict the sudden death of the battery, predict faults,
improve battery design and monitor user’s behavior.
Tracking the use of batteries in EVs, at all stages of the supply chain,
allows user behavior data to be available so that the battery manufac
turer can, for example, identify a particular driver profile. Based on the
data obtained during the operation of EVs, it is possible to obtain in
formation about road conditions, climate in the region, terrain condi
tions, driver behavior and from that, the battery manufacturer can offer
a service of insurance for accidents, anticipate the replacement of the
battery and charge for the rental of the battery a fee proportional to the
terms of use.
Data storage while using batteries in EVs can be implemented on a
blockchain-based platform and allows a better understanding of how
batteries will age in a second application. The system can also help to
determine how long the battery will last in a second use and conse
quently find out the value that the used battery will get based on busi
ness risk. Therefore, companies can define different strategies to
increase their revenues, increase battery life, ensure that EV batteries
will have a second use and reduce environmental impacts.
EV batteries are an expensive product that corresponds to 35% of the
total cost of the EV [28,29] and that requires great investment to make it
a product of quality, performance and safety. Counterfeiting batteries
can make the battery market vulnerable to insertion of batteries that do
not have certification and consequently have lower quality and safety
than certified batteries [30].
Avoiding adulteration and counterfeiting of EV batteries means
protecting customers from dangerous situations such as: accidents
involving batteries, improper charging of batteries in charging stations
without certification and from other manufacturers, use of low quality
cells, among other situations that can be extremely catastrophic and
capable of damaging the company’s brand. It is important to note that
the greater the added value of the battery and its market share, the
greater the interest of fraudsters to adulterate the battery. The customer
who buys a counterfeit battery may not experience the expected range,
charging time and other features, so he may imply that the original
branded product is bad, even though he knows that the product he
bought a counterfeit product from. This can cause the battery manu
facturer to have a bad reputation and a reduction in its market share
[30].
In the process of charging and discharging LIBs, it is necessary to
keep the voltage within defined limits. For example, in the charging
process, the cell voltage increases until it reaches a certain limit speci
fied by the manufacturer. And in the unloading process, the cell voltage
is reduced to a specific value determined by the manufacturer according
to the chemistry and characteristics of each cell. It is necessary to avoid
that the voltage of each cell exceeds the safety limits of each cell [30].
Counterfeit batteries may not have adequate protection to prevent
the batteries from assuming values of voltage, current, temperature
outside safety limits. In such cases it will not be possible to guarantee
that the cell will have the same quality as the original cell. It will also not
be possible to guarantee that counterfeit batteries will have the expected
lifetime, adequate insulation to avoid electric shock, the minimum
protection necessary to avoid the adverse effects of humidity, avoid
overheating, combustion and explosion [30].
Another point that is important to mention is the fact that individual
parts of the original batteries can be exchanged for parts from other
manufacturers. That is, it is possible that the batteries have some indi
vidual parts replaced by parts of worse quality. In these situations, it is
possible that the batteries do not provide adequate current for the
application (be it an EV or a second use) and also do not have the range
and charging time expected by the customer. Therefore, battery data
from production to availability on the market can provide important
quality and performance indicators to make it possible for the battery
design to be refined [30].
In summary, a blockchain-based platform could allow trading and
monitoring the battery life cycle and offer the aforementioned war
ranties both to the OEM, to the manufacturers of second-life systems and
to the end customer. Therefore, each business model will need a contract

7
model, and a flexible, automatic and secure platform can guarantee for
all parties involved in the business greater security, lower costs and
enable the sale of second-life batteries. Table 2 presents a search to
present in a condensed way the main reasons for tracking batteries using
a blockchain-based platform.
4.1.2. What are the benefits of tracking batteries across the supply chain?
Tracking batteries across the production chain through a blockchain
platform can remove the need for a trusted authority to manage batteries
and their digital twins [34–37]. This way, battery manufacturers will
have several advantages such as:
• Analysis and increase in efficiency of each stage of the production
process and the battery supply chain;
• Waste reduction;
• Predict battery failures;
• Optimization of the battery design;
• Identification of the parts of the batteries with the highest failure rate
and the lowest efficiency;
• Identification of the stages of the production process and the supply
chain of the batteries with less efficiency;
• Battery maintenance management;
• Operational stability;
• Agility, efficiency and effectiveness in decision making;
• Predictive failure analysis;
• Data-based decisions;
• Standardization of the operation;
• Generation of indicators for the quality team to make decisions based
on resource efficiency;
• Determination of the technical and economic feasibility of reusing
and recycling batteries;
• Estimation of battery life;
• Reduction in the number of stops at the factory: tracing the batteries
at each stage of the supply chain will allow for better production
planning and, consequently, fewer stops or delays in the delivery of
the final product;
• Availability of all battery information and parameters for consulta
tion, fault analysis and root cause determination;
• Avoid making the wrong decisions due to the lack of information and
knowledge of the production process, as well as the conditions of
design and use of the product;
• Prevent batteries from being disposed of in inappropriate places or
becoming orphans (without a person responsible for their final
destination);
• Tracking batteries allows environmental data to be stored at each
stage of the battery production process, enabling more accurate
environmental control;
• Product Quality;
• Monitoring and reduction of environmental impacts;
• Ability to simulate future scenarios: based on historical data for each
stage of the battery supply chain, it is possible for companies to es
timate the effects, make decisions and anticipate measures to prevent
and mitigate damage caused by a crisis such as the 2008 economic
crisis caused by the bubble real estate in the United States and the
2019 economic crisis caused by Covid-19.
The work presented in Ref. [38] points out that the trade in
second-life batteries is promising and an electronic commerce system
should promote the exchange of information between different parts of
the business. The authors conducted interviews to identify which
transactions are likely to occur in the second-life battery trade, in order
to reduce transaction costs. The results of the investigation show that it
is possible to have two types of transactions: (i) transfer the second-life
battery to the energy storage system manufacturer and (ii) transfer of
the energy storage system built with second-life batteries to the
customer. According to the authors, an information system can store
Table 2
Reasons to track batteries with blockchain-based system.
Reason Reference
Entering data on a blockchain-based tracking platform is important for
manufacturers to estimate battery usage conditions during the first
and second lives, the status of the battery after the first life, the time
that the batteries will operate in a second-life, expenses for failures,
repairs or system replacements, allows manufacturers to optimize
battery components based on the data.
[31]
Inserting and recording data about the actual manufacturer of the
battery modules, logistics, life expectancy, reuse, recycling. In
addition, it is important to record the year of production of the
battery, the make, model, year of start of operation in EVs, which
region operated, type of road, country, state, etc.
[31,32]
Tracking the batteries is important for the product to be returned to the
dealer and for the battery manufacturer to be responsible for the
reverse logistics, reuse and recycling of the product.
[31]
The availability of data helps to reduce the need for unnecessary and
expensive testing which would make EV battery reuse unviable.
[31]
Battery data is important for identifying how EV batteries are being
stored, the quality of battery cells and modules, estimating how many
cycles per year the battery will operate in the first life and the second-
life, comparing the estimated data with the actual, the aging
mechanisms and how the batteries will behave in a second
application.
[31]
Protect both the OEM and customers from opportunistic behavior by
both parties and to identify who is responsible for a possible failure in
the energy storage system composed of second-life batteries, as well
as to predict failures, identify battery fraud and/or other behavior
that does not comply with OEM policies.
[31,32]
In business models in which the batteries will be offered as a service,
that is, they will be rented charging a fixed monthly fee for their use.
In such cases, it is important that data such as number of complete
cycles, energy consumption, etc. registered on a secure and tamper-
proof platform protecting customers and OEMs.
[31]
The battery tracking platform will protect the OEM against unjustified
customer complaints by recording data and conditions of use.
[31]
The battery tracking platform will provide security and increase the
feeling of trust between customers and OEMs, as well as between
battery manufacturers and third parties.
[31]
Protected data will make it easier for OEMs to provide adequate
technical support.
[31]
Tracking batteries will allow a better estimate of the volume of batteries
available for reuse and/or recycling, which batteries have been
disposed of correctly, which volume of batteries have been reused and
recycled. In addition, control the volume of batteries illegally
disposed of and monitor OEMs so that the destination of the batteries
is adequate.
[33]
Prevent LIBs from being disposed of in inappropriate places,
guaranteeing the safety of society and the environment, given that
batteries can contaminate the soil, ignite and explode spontaneously.
[33]
Track the number of batteries repaired or replaced during the warranty
period due to damage, defects but whose replacement and/or repair
costs were not covered by the battery manufacturer.
[33]
It allows for greater control and monitoring of how recycling and reuse
of batteries is being carried out by OEMs, preventing recycling from
being carried out by unauthorized companies and/or having low
performance and low efficiency in their recycling process, preventing
operators are exposed to dangerous toxins and avoid damage to
operators and the environment. The customer will have full
knowledge of the production process, operation in the EVs, reuse and
recycling. Maximize the recovery of valuable chemical components
from the battery.
The main data that can be recorded by the battery tracking platform are:
chemical composition, capacity, weight, producer, change of
producer in case the battery is reused and becomes a new product.
[33]
Facilitate the control and monitoring of battery transport to avoid
disproportionate costs and delays with the application.
[33]
Remove the uncertainty that the buyer may have in case of buying used
products and the tracking platform can expose the hidden
characteristics of the product, helping the customer’s decision
process, reducing the possibility of the customer buying a product that
does not meet their expectations.
[33]
In the case of batteries that have the production company responsible
for recycling and reuse, they are bankrupt or are not identified
(“orphaned” batteries), new managers are assigned to contribute to
the correct disposal of EV batteries at the end of their useful life.
[33]
(continued on next page)

8
data regarding the use of the battery in the EV, the current data after
tests and adjustments for a second application, as well as data during the
second-life.
The work presented in Ref. [38] shows the importance of a platform
that could ensure companies, protecting from opportunistic behavior
both from the customer and from another company, depending on the
business model. Each company has a business model that can be
Business-to-Customer (B2C) or Business-to-Business (B2B) and,
depending on the business model, each party needs guarantees. The
OEM needs some guarantees, such as [38]:
• Data and technology protection: depending on the business model,
the OEM may need to share information and data about the first and
second use of second-life batteries. Battery data during operation is
important for battery manufacturers to calculate expenses, identify
causes of failure, repair and optimize internal battery components
[31]. Making it necessary that the contract drawn up between the
OEM and the other parties involved in the business in order to ensure
that data, information and technology are protected.
• Protection of your brand: In the event of an accident that happens
with second-life batteries, the company’s brand must be protected
from any damage to its brand.
• Protection of your technology against improper use and product
tampering: The OEM expects the platform to monitor the operation
of the batteries during the first and second use, so that the OEM is
able to identify any improper operation or tampering with the bat
teries. Thus, the OEM may receive the batteries in top condition and
can reduce the cost of testing and remanufacturing.
• Second-life market control: the transfer of knowledge, data and in
formation, as well as the transfer of technology can cause the OEM to
lose control of the second-life market.
In the case of the company that will integrate the second-life battery
with a second application, it is possible to emphasize the need to receive
some guarantees such as [38]:
• Battery performance: the second-life manufacturer can expect to
have assurances that used EV batteries will meet the requirements of
the second-life application.
• Lifetime in second-life: second-life manufacturers expect to be
assured of how long the batteries will operate in a second
application.
• Number of batteries that will be available for each period of time
(month, quarter, year): Second-life manufacturers expect to have a
forecast of how many batteries will be available to be reused to chart
their company’s strategies, estimate sales numbers and identify new
markets. A platform that identifies the number of second-life batte
ries available on the market can help estimate the sale price, pay
ment terms, among other parameters calculated based on the
number of batteries available on the market.
• Low cost: second-life manufacturers expect used EV batteries to be
cheaper than new ones, because otherwise they will be able to buy
new batteries. Therefore, a blockchain-based platform can automate
transactions, eliminate third parties and reduce transaction costs by
enabling lower battery costs.
• Safety: Second-life battery buyers expect these batteries to be able to
integrate with their equipment and meet the safety requirements of
the second application.
• Knowledge sharing: In order for the second-life manufacturer to es
timate the time that EV batteries will operate in a second application,
they may need information and data provided by the OEM, as well as
they may need to provide information about the characteristics of the
second application, the second-life, etc. Therefore, it is essential that
the trading platform and the contract protect the information and
data from the manufacturer of second-life storage systems.
Finally, customers expect guarantees such as [38]:
• Safety: customers expect security when operating a system built with
second-life batteries.
• Low cost: customers expect the system using second-life batteries to
be cheap.
• Meet expectations: expects the second-life battery system to resolve
its “market pain” and deliver value by providing some benefit to the
customer.
4.1.3. Who are the actors in the automotive battery supply chain?
The battery supply chain is made up of several stakeholders who may
not completely trust each other. The main players in the EV battery
supply chain are parts suppliers, raw material suppliers, battery manu
facturers, automobile manufacturers, companies responsible for battery
logistics, battery testing and classification companies, battery recycling
companies and regulatory authorities, as shown in Fig. 4.
Battery manufacturers may have several suppliers of raw materials
and battery parts. Raw materials are a critical factor in the production of
batteries because in addition to the uncertainty of their availability, they
are strongly influenced by storage and transport conditions and are
affected by humidity, temperature and, in some cases, by light [40]. It is
very important for battery manufacturers to have information about the
supplier such as: carbon footprint of the raw material, history of in
terruptions and delays that a given supplier had in the last month,
storage conditions of the raw material, capacity of that supplier, type of
raw material, quality of the raw material, location of its stock, regula
tory barriers of the country where the supplier is located, its financial
situation and reputation in the market. These data are intended to assist
battery manufacturers in planning their operation in order to keep the
minimum stock possible, determine what is the level of safety stock that
should be maintained, what will be the orders of customers that should
be prioritized, when and what inventory items are to be replenished. It is
also important that this production planning is focused on obtaining
lower manufacturing and transportation costs, and maximizing effi
ciency and the level of service quality [40].
Due to extended responsibility, battery manufacturers want to have
as much information as possible about their batteries and a solution to
this problem could be tracking cells using a blockchain-based platform.
The latter would provide complete history of their manufacture, their
behavior and performance during usage, its residual value, its quality
and safety. Some data are important for this analysis, such as: cell
chemistry, separator type, estimated life, electrolyte chemistry, number
of cycles in each application, discharge depth, charge status, health
status, charge/discharge curves, number of battery protection system
alerts, separator conditions, internal resistance, cell voltage, cell cur
rent, among other information [40]. Among these parameters the most
important are the number of cycles that have a strong influence on the
price of the battery and the internal resistance that is directly related to
the health status of the battery.
Battery and automobile manufacturers are interested in tracking the
battery supply chain mainly due to the legislation in several countries
that gives the manufacturer (the one who puts the battery first on the
market) the responsibility to recovering and recycling the batteries.
Since batteries that reach the end of their useful life in EVs still have a
Table 2 (continued)
Reason Reference
The European Commission has recently introduced recycling efficiency
and the recovery rate of raw materials such as Co, Ni, Li, Cu and
therefore, battery tracking will help to ensure that the percentage
target determined by European legislation is achieved by companies.
[33]

9
remaining charge that can be used to increase companies’ revenue and
reduce the cost of recycling, it is expected that the batteries will have a
second use before being recycled.
Logistics operating companies can be hired to transport batteries by
being part of the battery supply chain and capturing value through the
transport of batteries. It is very important for battery manufacturers to
obtain information on the history of theft and diversion of cargo, late
deliveries, transportation costs, customer satisfaction, transportation
conditions, compliance with the legislation on the transport of hazard
ous materials, availability of fleet, quantity in volume and weight that
the logistics operator is able to transport in a given period of time,
number of accidents involving improper battery transport, number of
collisions between vehicles, Key Performance Indicator (KPI) for each
logistics operator, routes, number of battery transport occurrences
under inadequate conditions, non-conformity index of each logistics
operator, etc [40].
After the batteries become unfit for use in EVs, the batteries can be
tested and classified before being inserted in a second application. These
battery tests and classification can be done by the battery manufacturers
or companies contracted by them. These specialist battery testing and
rating companies receive second-life batteries and capture value by of
fering the service of testing and rating batteries. After the second use, the
batteries will be recycled and their secondary raw material will be
reinserted in the supply chain, thus realizing the circular economy.
Car manufacturers are responsible for inserting batteries in EVs. This
step is a crucial one because car manufacturers need some data from the
batteries to determine whether the latter will have the proper perfor
mance, quality and safety to operate on EVs. Therefore, a blockchain-
based platform can guarantee security, transparency and immutability
to hold the EV owner responsible for improper battery use. It is also
possible to discover the root cause of an accident involving batteries and
to assign responsibility for that accident to any of the actors partici
pating in the supply chain.
After reaching the range of 70–80% of the remaining charge rec
ommended by the car manufacturers, the car manufacturers recommend
that the batteries be removed from the vehicles and directed to the
producer. EV batteries after use have a remaining charge that can be
used to increase revenue for the battery manufacturer, and EV owners
can gain some benefits, such as reduced EV prices or even a reduction in
the cost of energy to recharge the EVs, by means of a contract between
proprietary EVs and the OEM establishes agreements on the first and the
second use of the battery. The reduction in the energy tariff can be
obtained if the OEM reuses batteries to build energy storage systems that
will certainly be cheaper than storage systems built with new batteries
[41].
The collection of the battery after use in EVs can be done by an
authorized company of the producer, which can be a car manufacturer, a
dealership, a company responsible for logistics, a manufacturer of sec
ond life systems or a manufacturer of batteries. This will depend on who
will be the battery producer and the last user of the battery. This pro
ducer will be able to choose the second use or direct recycling of
batteries.
When the battery manufacturer is not the same one of the energy
storage system built with second-life batteries, it will be necessary for
the battery manufacturer to share some data with the second life system
manufacturer (and vice versa) so that both have the necessary infor
mation to estimate the useful life of the batteries in a second application,
which second life application is more feasible, what is the technical and
economic feasibility of reusing these second life batteries in a less
demanding application, what is the price of these batteries and whether
the batteries will have adequate quality, performance and safety to
operate in a second application [42].
Storing battery data on a blockchain-based platform has the advan
tage that network participants can query and make decisions based on
the data. In addition to battery data, it is also possible to store the user’s
private key on the network, so that this private key is the digital
signature of whoever stored the data on the network. In this way, it is
possible to guarantee data integrity and data authenticity. Therefore, the
blockchain allows the end user of the battery to know the entire history
of the product he is purchasing. And on the other hand, the battery
manufacturer will have knowledge of how their product is being used,
who it was sold to, and who are the intermediaries in the supply chain.
Fig. 5 shows the battery supply chain and how the flow of the physical
object and digital data can be [43,44].
4.1.4. Some innovative cases of product tracking with blockchain-based
platform
There are many case studies that show the viability of using the
blockchain for tracking and tracing perisheable goods for the retail
market, as the result of a cooperation between the food company BRF,
the retailer Carrefour and IBM. The consortium has set up a blockchain-
based platform for tracking products such as, milk and meat, encom
passing the production chain, from the production process, the com
mercial stage and logistics. The application allows the consumer, for
Fig. 4. EV battery supply chain actors.

10
example, to know the place where the milk was collected, packaged as
long as the customer uses the camera of his cell phone to identify a QR
code and the application shows all the information of the product’s
production cycle. Among the values generated to the customer, we can
mention the increase in confidence in the product, identification of the
place and conditions of production, identification of irregularities,
production date and validity. For the company, the main values are the
automation of processes, as well as the elimination of adulteration of its
product, increase of sales and prevention of possible damages to its
brand [46,47].
An innovative start-up called SeedsBit offers a platform for tracking
the entire supply chain of products in the agri-food sector, so it is
possible for the customer to know the entire history of the product, from
its production to how the waste of that product is managed. One of the
main advantages of this platform is the use of blockchain technology
that enables data validation, information auditing and process tracking
in a transparent and immutable way. The SeedsBit platform allows all
actors in the product supply chain to have access to relevant product
information through Application Programming Interface (API’s). These
cases can be used as a starting point for tracking and tracing batteries,
despite the objectives, the scenarios but overall the distributed logic to
be implemented are profoundly different in the two scenarios [48].
However, there are still challenges that need to be overcome to track
batteries. In the battery production process, it may be necessary to
change the batch of a given battery and, therefore, the marker must be
changed or this change of the battery batch must be updated in a
database. Another challenge is that the markers must be placed on the
batteries in a way that does not compromise their quality or perfor
mance. For example, if a marker is placed on a battery’s electrode, it can
increase its impedance and reduce cell performance [22,49,50].
Fig. 5. Example of a blockchain application for tracking the supply chain of EV batteries.

11
Therefore, a study on the type of marker that should be placed on the
batteries to provide battery data at each stage of the supply chain should
be carried out. The next section of this paper aims to investigate these
markers.
4.1.5. Identification of batteries
The first challenge in developing a blockchain-based solution for
tracking the battery supply chain is to define the type of marker or
identifier that can be used to identify batteries at different levels in the
supply chain. Battery tracking across the supply chain can be done in
batch (from a group of batteries) or for each battery. Tracking a batch of
products is cheaper and simpler than tracking individual products. On
the other hand, tracking individual products is more accurate and can
provide more information and more appropriate insights [22].
The identification of each battery can be done by inserting a direct
identifier on the surface of the battery, for example, a bar code, a 2D
code such as DataMatrix codes or numerical systems. It is also possible to
identify the batteries by means of the electrical or mechanical charac
teristics of the battery [22].
Identifiers can be divided into two categories: tactile or non-tactile.
Tactile identifiers are identifiers that require mechanical gauges to
identify batteries through direct contact. This type of identifier is
generally simple to implement and cheaper than non-tactile identifiers.
On the other hand, there are non-tactile identifiers that do not require
direct contact from sensors to identify the batteries. Usually these non-
tactile identifiers provide information about the part through Radio
Frequency Identification signals (RFID) or wireless network (Wireless
Local Area Network, WLAN, or bluetooth). Non-tactile identifiers,
although more expensive than non-tactile identifiers, can be more ac
curate and provide more information about the monitored part than
tactile identifiers [22].
Table 3 presents a comparison between the different types of applied
identifiers that can be used to monitor the production process of the
batteries. As shown in Table 3 the use of identifiers applied to monitor
the paste is of low potential because it can compromise the quality of the
material. On the other hand, individual optical applied markers have a
high potential to be used to individually monitor the electrode coating,
electrode cut, cell assembly and cell completion [22].
Table 4 presents a comparison between the potential of using non-
applied markers to identify the batteries individually. Note that the
mathematical marker has a high potential to monitor the steps of elec
trode coating, electrode cutting, cell assembly and cell completion.
However, the markers are not applied to monitor the paste mixing step
[22].
Table 5 presents a comparison between the potential of using applied
identifiers to monitor a group of batteries. Note that, with the exception
of the applied mechanical identifiers, the other types of applied identi
fiers for group monitoring for each stage of battery production, have
high or medium potential to be used [22].
Table 6 presents a comparison of the potential of applying unapplied
markers to monitor the production stages of the batteries. Note that non-
applied markers have a high potential to be used in monitoring all stages
of the battery production process [22].
Battery tracking can be implemented in a number of ways. One way
of authenticating the batteries is by inserting an integrated circuit
capable of storing the battery identification that can be read electrically
(for example: ID Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EPROM))
[30].
Electrical authentication can be implemented by using a communi
cation bus, High-speed Data Queue (HDQ) or I2C that communicates
with an integrated circuit inside the battery. The integrated circuit in
turn can have an authentication function capable of allowing the ex
change of data between the battery and the host. The disadvantage of
this system is that the information travels on a bus and can be obtained
by a counterfeiting agent if he inserts an oscilloscope on the bus or
duplicates that data with another EPROM or microcontroller. Although
there is a possibility that this system will discourage battery counter
feiters by requiring an additional electronic circuit, it still does not
guarantee against tampering of battery data [30].
4.1.6. What data will be stored on a blockchain-based platform at each
stage of the supply chain?
Data during first use can be obtained in two ways: (i) during
scheduled maintenance or at the end of its useful life, if the data is stored
in the BMS or on the vehicle’s on-board computer, they are centralized,
prone to tampering and in general not available because collected for
internal usage and therefore encrypted [38,51–53], (ii) in real time, sent
at constant intervals via the internet. The main requirement that the
information system must have in this latter case, is the ability to encrypt,
store, process and export this data [38].
The insertion of battery data into a blockchain network can make the
data available to be consumed by business intelligence tools and for the
creation of artificial intelligence models that will be able to determine
which scenarios of second use of EV batteries are viable. Different types
of data can be entered on the blockchain-based platform. These data are
obtained through measurement tests, such as: impedance spectroscopy,
Table 3
Comparison between the modes of applying markers to identify an object individually along the battery production chain.
Production phase Tracked Object Detection type
Single object with an applied identifier
Contactless Tactile
Optical Magnetic Radio Mechanical Electrical Circuit
Slurry mixing Slurry fluid No/low No/low No/low No/low No/low
Electrode coating Electrode foil High No/low No/low No/low No/low
Electrode cutting Stripe/Sheets High Middle Middle No/low No/low
Cell assembly Coil/Stack High Middle Middle No/low No/low
Finishing Cell wrap High Middle Middle No/low No/low
Table 4
Comparison between ways to use non-applied markers to identify an object
individually along the battery production chain.
Production
phase
Tracked
Object
Detection type
Single object without an applied identifier
Optical Math.
Surface struc., Shape,
Colour
Math. model, Logical
model
Slurry mixing Slurry fluid No/low No/low
Electrode
coating
Electrode foil Middle High
Electrode
Cutting
Stripe/Sheets Middle High
Cell assembly Coil/Stack Middle High
Finishing Cell wrap High Middle

12
cycle tests, etc. After the tests, it is possible to build models based on
artificial intelligence to determine the loss of battery capacity, the useful
life, among other factors. Fig. 6 presents some types of data that can be
entered in the blockchain-based platform, as well as, some analyses that
can be performed and the various output variables that can be estimated
based on this data.
The system should ensure that intermediary companies do not have
access to specific and confidential first-life data and, therefore, must
provide keys so that the intermediary has access only to the data
necessary for a second-life application. One way to grant greater au
tonomy to the manufacturer of energy storage systems built with
second-life batteries is to provide the possibility for it to replace or
reconfigure the BMS using new encryption [38].
4.2. Creating a digital twin
Inserting battery data at each stage of the battery supply chain will
make it possible to create a digital twin. A digital twin is a digital copy
that accurately describes a system or product in the physical world. This
product from the physical world may be an automotive battery. With the
exact copy of the battery in the digital world it is possible to run mul
tiphysics simulations in the cloud [29]. Fig. 7 presents a flow chart of
how the flow of information can be done in an application.
Digital twin technology allows battery manufacturers to obtain in
formation about some battery parameters, such as charge status and
health status, which may not be possible by directly measuring battery
parameters. The digital twins are an exact copy of the batteries that are
updated in real time so that the digital copy of the battery reflects the
current battery conditions. From the data it is possible to create
graphical front-end interfaces with several dashboards to present the
relevant information to each of the interested parties [29].
Digital twins can be used to estimate battery degradation mecha
nisms, predict performance and reduce the cost of the actual battery
system. Battery manufacturers typically establish safety intervals for
each battery parameter. Although these parameters guarantee the safety
of the batteries, they can operate in a suboptimal region with low effi
ciency, with possible sudden death or premature failure [15].
The creation of a digital twin of the batteries allows the evaluation of
several metrics simultaneously, such as: State of Charge (SoC), State of
Health (SoH), State-of-Available-Power (SoAP) and Remaining Useful
Life (RUL). There are metrics that can reflect the battery’s physical
characteristics, such as the potential of individual electrodes, lithium
concentration profiles, among other information that can be used to
improve the battery design and minimize battery charging time.
Registering all battery information on a blockchain-based platform
makes it possible to create an exact copy of the battery in the digital
world with specific battery production information individually on
including manufacturing defects or events that occurred during battery
manufacture [15].
In addition to digital twins with a focus on battery design,
manufacturing and forecasting, they can also be used to improve a
plant’s efficiency and productivity. The digital twins can also be used as
business tools, generating appropriate insights for data-driven decision
making and in the creation of new business models because it will allow
the simulation of different scenarios. Cost savings can also be achieved
with the use of digital twins to automate processes and reduce the
number of errors.
The advent of industry 4.0 has made it possible to use smart sensors
that are making the battery supply chain increasingly monitored and
tracked. Digital twins can integrate the entire logistics chain from the
planning stage, which includes the acquisition of raw materials, deter
mination of the quantity and quality of the raw material, demand esti
mation, inventory management, delivery forecast and the effective
delivery of the product.
The integration of digital twins from obtaining data through a
blockchain-based platform will enable numerous benefits for battery
manufacturers, such as [40]:
• Possibility of assessing how changes in alternative raw materials,
battery design and manufacturing process influence the quality and
safety of batteries;
• Increased resource efficiency: screening of raw materials, efficiency
of manufacturing, remanufacturing and recycling processes, as well
as correct calculations of wasted resources.
• Faster product development cycles: evaluation of the time of each
stage of the design and manufacture of the batteries, estimation of
the manufacturing time, identification of bottlenecks and imple
mentation of improvements to obtain faster product manufacturing
cycles;
• Enhanced flexibility;
• Creation of models capable of improving the design and manufacture
of batteries: the use of digital twins will make it possible to predict
failures, battery quality and battery safety in different scenarios;
• Battery optimization: real-time monitoring of the batteries makes it
possible to exchange data and implement optimization software
Table 5
Comparison between the possibilities of inserting applied markers to identify a group of batteries along the battery production chain.
Production phase Tracked Object Detection type
Object group with an applied identifier
Contactless Tactile
Optical Magnetic Radio Mechanical Electrical Circuit
Slurry mixing Slurry fluid High Middle High No/low Middle
Electrode coating Electrode foil High Middle High No/low Middle
Electrode cutting Stripe/Sheets High Middle High No/low Middle
Cell assembly Coil/Stack High Middle High No/low Middle
Finishing Cell wrap High Middle High No/low Middle
Table 6
Comparison between the possibilities of inserting non-applied markers to
identify a group of batteries along the battery production chain.
Production
phase
Tracked
Object
Detection type
Object group without an applied identifier
Optical Math.
Surface struc., Shape,
Colour
Math. model, Logical
model
Slurry mixing Slurry fluid High High
Electrode
coating
Electrode foil High High
Electrode
cutting
Stripe/Sheets High High
Cell assembly Coil/Stack High High
Finishing Cell wrap High High

13
capable of operating on the battery so that it always operates at the
point of maximum efficiency.
• It will allow you to control the supply chain from end to end, so that
battery data at each stage of your supply chain will be recorded by
recording information about the origin of the raw material, the
automotive use, the use in a second application, the recycling and the
feedback of the closed loop cycle with the raw materials recovered in
the recycling process;
• Environmental impacts: estimating the carbon footprint in a precise
way based on data enabling the simulation of more sustainable
scenarios for the implementation of the circular economy in an
effective way.
The main challenge of creating a digital battery twin is data. Data is a
challenge for the creation of digital twins for three main reasons: cost,
quality and intellectual protection. Obtaining data across the battery
Fig. 6. Different potential on-board data types, analysis techniques and output information.

14
supply chain requires the involvement of different actors in the EV
ecosystem to define which data is relevant to the creation of a digital
battery twin because the amount of data is strongly related to the cost of
technology. Therefore, the use of little data can cause the system not to
serve the purposes for which it was created and the use of a large amount
of data can increase the cost of the system [40].
Another concern is regarding the quality of the data. It is very
important that the data is complete, standardized and that all actors in
the battery value chain insert real data in the correct way. For this
reason, the awareness of all actors in the battery value chain must be in
the sense of emphasizing the importance of the correct data [40].
Finally, another challenge that needs to be overcome is the man
agement of data sharing. Data is a company asset that needs to be pro
tected from competitors at the risk of disclosing its competitive
advantages. The creation of the digital battery twin requires different
players to provide information about the battery and to share data with
the different actors in the battery supply chain. Some actors in this
supply chain may not have the technological maturity or interest in
sharing this data due to the risk of exposing sensitive data. Therefore,
the use of the blockchain platform can help different actors in the bat
tery value chain to enter data and verify it with greater security and
transparency [40].
4.3. Battery swapping (value comparable)
One of the major barriers to the penetration of EVs in the market is
the anxiety of range. EV owners report that vehicle recharge times are
still very high when compared to the time to fill a fuel tank in conven
tional vehicles. Another barrier for EVs is the range anxiety of EV owners
who report that the autonomy of this type of vehicle is still not sufficient
for several scenarios, especially when considering countries with large
territorial extensions.
Fig. 7. Cyber-physical elements of a digital twin.

15
Business models based on battery change aim to reduce the time that
EV owners spend to recharge their vehicles. In this type of business
model, the owner of an EV uses his vehicle until the battery reaches a
low charge level. When the vehicle’s battery reaches a low charge level,
the EV owner moves to a battery exchange station and replaces the
discharged battery with another fully charged battery. This battery
replacement process takes a few minutes.
After the battery replacement procedure has been carried out, the EV
owner can drive his vehicle again until the battery is discharged and the
process is repeated again. The operator of the battery exchange station
recharges the battery with a low level of charge, using renewable energy
sources and during off-peak hours. Fig. 8 illustrates this procedure for
changing batteries.
In this type of business model the driver must trust that the battery
exchange station will provide a charged battery with the same condi
tions as the vehicle’s discharged battery. On the other hand, the battery
exchange station also expects to receive a battery from the EV driver that
has not been tampered with or damaged.
Blockchain-based technology is an excellent option to solve this
problem when there is distrust between the parties involved. To solve
this problem of mistrust between the parties, it is necessary to determine
the real value of the discharged battery that is in the EV to compare with
the value of the battery that will be inserted in the vehicle. For this, the
data from both batteries can be recorded on a blockchain-based platform
that will determine the actual condition of both batteries and calculate
the compensation value that one of the parties proportional to the dif
ference between the price of the two batteries. This technology has the
advantage of being decentralized, secure, private and can guarantee the
audit if one of the parties deems it necessary.
In other words, the blockchain-based platform will be able to
determine the real value of the vehicle battery that will be discharged or
with a low charge level and compare it with the value of the battery that
will be inserted into the vehicle by the exchange station ensuring that
one of the parties is rewarded if there is any difference between the
conditions of both batteries. In order to determine the fair price of each
battery it is necessary to determine the quality of the battery based on
the data. Fig. 9 presents some types of data that can contribute to the
determination of the quality of the battery, which analyzes can be
offered on a platform that offers the service based on battery swapping
and some output variables from the platform.
The Blueprint methodology was applied to help understand the tasks
and processes that a blockchain-based platform must have to implement
the battery swapping business model. In this methodology, the first step
was to define what actions the client should take to solve his problem.
After that, it was defined what the blockchain-based platform can offer
to solve the problem, how the platform will allow interaction with the
user and what messages will be sent to him. Finally, we define the
objective that will be achieved after each action has been mapped.
Table 7 presents the main tasks and processes that must be implemented
on the blockchain-based platform to achieve the expected objectives.
4.4. Tokenization of battery attributes and carbon footprint certification
In recent years, standards and legislation are increasingly stricter
with the aim of encouraging companies to reduce their greenhouse gas
emissions. In 2005, the Kyoto Protocol was ratified, which is a clean
development mechanism, where the most industrialized countries can
offset their emissions through carbon credits (certified emissions) made
in developing countries. These greenhouse gas emissions projects
generated in developing countries are classified as a clean development
mechanism, supervised by the United Nations Framework Convention
on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
As a result, economic blocks such as the European Union have set a
certain limit on the emission of greenhouse gases and, if there are
emissions of greenhouse gases above this limit, the excess quantity must
be acquired from developing countries (international carbon credits) or
nearby EU countries. In the case of the European Union, the Emission
Trading System (ETS) sets a cap for emissions that decreases along time.
Such cap is applied only so some sectors of the economy and if any
company emits greenhouse gases above the sector’s emission limit, that
company must acquire an amount of carbon credits equivalent to excess
share of greenhouse gas emissions within or outside the EU. Therefore,
companies are required to pay a fee in euros for each ton of excess
greenhouse gas emissions.
The described ETS mechanism applies to power plants, industry
factories and aviation sector and will now be extended by means of the
‘Fit for 55’ package to mobility, buildings and maritime sectors. Emis
sion Trading System, under the Kyoto protocol, make use of tradable
carbon credits that are a mechanism that obliges companies that emit
beyond their quota of greenhouse gas emissions, to buy carbon credits
from companies that emit less than the amount of greenhouse gases that
they could emit as established by the Protocol of Kyoto. Through carbon
credits, there is a transfer of resources from companies that have less
sustainable industrial processes to more sustainable companies. There
fore, the most sustainable companies are given incentives to become
even more sustainable while the most polluting companies are penalized
for their high emission of greenhouse gases.
There is a growing desire in society to reach a new zero greenhouse
gas emissions in the transport sector development model. While the
COP26 Agreement aimed to keep the worldwide global temperature rise
Fig. 8. Illustration of how EV drivers can replace their dead batteries with fully charged batteries in just a few minutes in business models based on battery swapping.

16
at a maximum of 1.5 ◦
C, this ambitious target was only partly accepted
by most countries. Other targets have been set so as to reduce the waste
volume and increase its reuse, avoid the depletion of fossil resources,
ensure that the whole society has access to water and food, guarantee
labor rights and increase system productivity. Another aspect is that the
consumer market is constantly changing and more and more consumers
of new generations are interested in buying from more sustainable
companies.
Recognizing that road transport accounts for 10% worldwide emis
sions, there is a strong need to implement effective means to truly abate
emissions in this sector. In Europe, the new Fit for 55 package will act on
fuel suppliers thus producing an increase of costs to end users. However,
as above outlined, it is not enough to switch from Internal Combustion
engines to EV’s, but rather to create a circular economy around electric
mobility. To do so, not only batteries and cars manufacturers, but also
fuel suppliers may have a digital certificate that proves that the company
has avoided the emission of a certain amount that can be quantified in
tons of CO2, both in terms of direct and embedded emissions. This
certification will value the most sustainable companies so that these
companies will have a greater added value in their product. A battery’s
embedded emissions being the sum of greenhouse gas emissions needed
to bring the battery to market. This includes emissions generated
through raw material extraction/farming, processing of materials, as
well as the manufacturing and transportation of the final product. Also
emissions associated with the use and eventual disposal or reuse of a
product, very similar to the product lifecycle approach, should be
considered.
In this way, a battery manufacturer can receive the certificate of
sustainable lifecycle battery production. The criteria for issuing a cer
tificate that proves that a given battery was produced sustainably must
consider social, environmental and economic aspects. Social criteria
must guarantee human and labor rights in all production, use and
management of water in an appropriate manner and without waste,
among other factors. The environmental criteria are aimed at ensuring
the reduction of greenhouse gases, reducing the environmental impacts
of battery production on the region’s fauna and flora, improving air
quality, among other factors. Finally, the economic criteria consider
whether the production is in accordance with the country’s legislation,
the planning and monitoring of the industrial process and the use of
efficient technologies [55]. For a company to have its process certified, it
must follow the steps presented in Fig. 10.
In Brazil, there is a program known as RenovaBio that aims to reduce
greenhouse gas emissions through the emission of carbon credits
[57–59]. A model similar to RenovaBio can be developed to calculate
the greenhouse gas emission level of each battery from the life cycle
analysis. In this way, it is possible to predict whether the country will
meet the decarbonization goals, as well as, it is possible to identify
whether the companies will meet the individual decarbonization goals.
Fig. 9. Data types, analyzes and outputs from the blockchain-based platform for battery swapping.
Table 7
Tasks and processes to achieve the expected objectives with the blockchain-based platform for battery swapping.
Blockchain-based platform for EV owners to request, receive and manage battery replacement.
Customer
actions
Want to change your battery Search nearby battery exchange stations Prompts to change the
battery
Check-in at the battery exchange
station
Replaces the
battery and
checks it out
Where it
occurs
Home, office, highways, roads,
streets
Blockchain-based platform Blockchain-based
platform
Battery exchange station Battery
exchange station
Apparent
tasks
Publications of the location of
battery exchange stations on the
blockchain-based platform
Buy a battery; Register the battery on the
blockchain-based platform; Battery and
account information
Well presented
platform
Telephone support for any
problems
Dispute
Resolution
Hidden
tasks
Content Curation Route optimization algorithm;
decentralized, immutable and
transparent database
Messaging System;
payment and refund
system
Check-in system Feedback
System
Support
processes
Content production and
communication management
Registration of battery data, verification
of customer identity, verification of
battery authenticity, payment and refund
between the parties
Payment and
scheduling issues
Tips on how to use batteries
properly, where to buy and replace
your battery, directions to places to
recharge your EV.
Battery
insurance claim
Desirable
output
Stimulate the exchange of
batteries through the platform
Indicate a nearby, suitable and certified
battery exchange station.
Make the reservation of
the time to effect the
change of batteries
Have an incredible experience with
your battery change and the
elimination of range anxiety.
Leave positive
feedback on the
platform

17
Estimating the environmental performance of battery production makes
it possible to compare the sustainability of EV’s with vehicles from other
transportation sources, which can increase the credibility and adoption
of EV’s on the market, as well as helping countries to achieve carbon
targets. Monitoring the entire battery production chain is essential to
estimate greenhouse gas emissions and certify each stage of battery
production. At the end of this process, carbon credits may be issued,
which can be traded on the stock exchange [57–59]. Fig. 11 presents a
flow chart of how carbon credits can be generated.
As mentioned above, for the issuance of the sustainable battery
production certificate, the calculation of the battery life cycle analysis
must be carried out in order to determine the carbon footprint of the
production process. The life cycle analysis is validated by the
accreditation body that issues the certificate. Based on this certificate,
companies receive an amount of decarbonization credit. This decar
bonization credit is a monetized asset traded on the stock exchange.
Fig. 12 presents a proposal for a process for issuing decarbonization
credits based on the production of batteries.
Blockchain technology can be used to certify the entire battery
supply chain. Fig. 13 shows a flow chart with a certified battery supply
chain. One of the most important steps is the certification of primary and
secondary battery raw materials and the certification of batteries to
operate in EV’s and in a second application. After the extraction and
refining of the batteries, cell production begins. This step is important
because there is a strong interest in the industry in understanding how
responsibility is transferred across the supply chain, as well as, in ways
Fig. 10. Steps in a certification process.
Fig. 11. How carbon credits can be generated in a battery supply chain.

18
to track those responsibilities (see Fig. 13).
The liability transfer model applies when a company transfers re
sponsibility for recycling to the company to which the battery is sold
(downstream of the battery’s supply chain). Considering the hypothesis
that the responsibility transfer model is applied, the responsibility for
recycling the battery would be transferred from the cell manufacturer to
the battery manufacturer at the time of sale of the cell. The transfer of
responsibility for recycling is important at this stage because as of the
cell’s manufacture, the material is activated, implying on it the legis
lation of hazardous materials. In this sense, blockchain technology can
contribute to the development of new business models with the aim of
sharing responsibility between each party, proportional to the profit that
both parties obtain from the sale of the final product and its role in the
market.
After manufacture, the cells are certified and sold to the battery
manufacturer. The integrator inserts the BMS, the enclosure and the
other components in the cell and, later, certifies the pack. Subsequently,
the battery manufacturer sells the battery to the vehicle manufacturer
and certifies the system (vehicle + batteries) transferring the re
sponsibility for recycling the batteries to the vehicle manufacturer.
Batteries can be sold as a product or as a service to the customer (EV
owner). When batteries are sold as a product to the customer, the re
sponsibility for recycling the battery, in most countries, is not trans
ferred to the customer because several countries apply the principle of
extended responsibility to the producer. In business models where bat
teries are offered as a service, car manufacturers charge an amount
proportional to the number of miles traveled or the time of use. How
ever, there is a conflicting environment between the battery manufac
turer, car manufacturer and the customer when the battery does not
reach its expected life. The battery manufacturer may claim that the
battery production process was adequate and that a battery failure
occurred due to a possible error in the integration of the battery in the
EV or improper use of the battery in the vehicle. Vehicle manufacturers
may claim that the customer used the battery improperly and the
customer may claim that the battery failure was due to a manufacturing
defect or failure to integrate the battery into the vehicle. These conflicts
can give rise to lawsuits that are not of interest to either party. There
fore, the use of blockchain technology, crossed and validated by all
parties, allows greater transparency of the conditions of manufacture,
integration in the vehicle and use of batteries.
After the batteries reach the end of their life in the vehicles, they will
be delivered by the vehicle owner to an authorized vehicle manufacturer
dealership or to a third party company specializing in battery collection.
In business models in which the batteries are collected by a third-party,
these companies collect the batteries and charge a fee from the com
panies responsible for recycling proportional to the weight of the bat
teries collected (for example, dollars/grams). There is an atmosphere of
mistrust between the outsourced company and the company responsible
for recycling batteries (which may be a manufacturer of batteries or
automobiles) because it is not easy to track the number and weight of
batteries that have been collected. In this scenario, the company
responsible for the collection of batteries may declare a number greater
than that actually collected to receive a higher amount for recycling the
batteries. In case of declaration of a number of recycled batteries greater
than the number actually recycled, damage to the environment will be
caused, as well as, financial losses to the company responsible for
recycling.
After collecting the batteries, the car manufacturer will be able to
remanufacture, remodel, reuse or dispose of the batteries for a second
use. If the vehicle manufacturer makes significant changes to this bat
tery, such as replacing damaged cells, it will be necessary that these
batteries be certified again. Identifying these changes, as well as who
was responsible for these changes, is a difficult task without tracking
cells and packaging components. The replacement of cells or the inser
tion of second-line rectified components can compromise the safety of
batteries leading to loss of certification and, therefore, need to be
identified through the use of technological tools in order to generate
value for companies.
Second-life batteries can also be sold as a product or as a service.
Therefore, in addition to performance and safety issues, there is a need
Fig. 12. Sustainable battery production certification process proposal.

19
Fig. 13. Certified battery supply chain.

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