Battelle Sustainability Research and Technological Innovations Bolster Climate Resilience

Technology’s impact on the health of our planet is a double-edged sword. Revolutionary technological advancements can help us decrease our energy consumption, reduce our reliance on fossil fuels and help remove pollution from our air—but they also can deplete precious resources, produce emissions and generate harmful waste.

As we advance with new technology, responsible resource use is key for future generations. This can mean conserving natural resources like fresh water and clean air and protecting them from human impacts. Or it can mean reusing resources that have already been manufactured – particularly those that can be gathered, processed and reused sustainably within our borders. When we acknowledge and address the potential effects new technologies and materials have on our natural environment beyond their carbon footprint, we can balance progress with preservation and reap the full benefits of innovation.

Minimizing Solar Panel Waste

Solar panels are a renewable energy source that can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve air quality and reduce water use, and they have a vital role to play in helping the U.S. transition to clean energy. However, they are made from materials that are mined and the process of manufacturing the panels can produce hazardous waste. Solar panels also have a limited lifespan and they often end up in landfills when they reach the end of their lifecycle, where they can contaminate groundwater with toxic metals like lead, selenium and cadmium.

To prevent the drawbacks of solar panels from outweighing the benefits, Battelle’s SOLAR team is developing tools, incentives and technologies to holistically support efforts to make recycling solar panels a more attractive choice than creating new ones from virgin materials. Recycling or repurposing solar photovoltaic (PV) panels at the end of their roughly 30-year lifetime conserves resources, protects the environment and can potentially unlock a large stock of raw materials and other valuable components. PV panel waste primarily comprises glass and is expected to total 78 million tons globally by 2050; however, the International Renewable Energy Agency estimates that recovered materials from end-of-life solar panels could have a value of more than $15 billion by 2050 if they are fully injected back into the economy.

Making Rare Earth Element Extraction More Sustainable

Rare earth elements are essential to manufacturing magnets, electronics, electric motors, fiber optics and many other core technologies we depend on every day. The U.S. military also uses a wide array of rare earth elements in lasers, precision guided weapons, jet engines and a plethora of other crucial devices. In the U.S. we have adequate amounts of rare earth elements, but we rely on other countries to separate and purify them because the process of doing so comes with significant health concerns and does not comply with our nation’s stringent environmental regulations. To reduce our supply chain vulnerability and enable the U.S. to separate, purify and convert rare elements domestically, Battelle is currently helping the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) develop more environmentally friendly methods of extraction.

Eradicating Harmful ‘Forever Chemicals’

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of man-made chemicals that are resistant to water, grease and heat and they have been used in nonstick cookware, food packaging, firefighting foams, medical devices and a wide array of other consumer products since the 1950s. Due to their strong chemical bond, PFAS don’t break down in the environment or the human body and are subsequently found in our water, soil and air and are extremely challenging to eradicate. Scientific studies have found that exposure to some PFAS can cause damage to the liver and immune system and may be linked to certain cancers, making them one of our nation’s biggest pollution problems.

There is an urgent need for sustainable alternatives to PFAS, as well as remediation strategies that can effectively remove these harmful chemicals from our environment. The Battelle-invented PFAS Annihilator® mobile technology is powered by supercritical water oxidation (SCWO) and uses high temperature and pressure to effectively destroy PFAS in contaminated wastewater, landfill leachate and Aqueous Film Forming Foam (AFFF) to non-detectable levels in seconds. Revive Environmental, a full-service environmental contaminant mitigation and water treatment company co-founded by Battelle and Viking Global Investors is currently deploying the PFAS Annihilator® in states across the U.S. to safely destroy PFAS-laced fire foam. In parallel, Battelle also provides analysis services for businesses and governments to detect and track PFAS across its many vectors of use in daily life.

Conscientious Innovation

Technological advancements fuel progress but they can both harm and heal our planet as well. We have a responsibility to keep innovation on a trajectory that takes the future into account. This is why Battelle is focused on developing sustainable solutions that tackle the effects of climate change without creating new environmental risks. If we develop and implement new technologies and groundbreaking capabilities thoughtfully and purposefully, we can keep our planet and its precious resources in good shape for all the future generations to come.

Learn more about how Battelle is supporting climate resilience and learn more about Battelle’s Innovations in Climate Resilience conference, the fourth iteration of which is set for April 21-23, 2025 in Washington, D.C. The ICR25 will showcase climate innovations and bring together like-minded professionals from government, private industry and academia who are shaping the future of the planet.