📋 Case Study
Hawaii Island BESS Decommissioning & Volcanic Soil Remediation
Thermal runaway residue leaching into porous volcanic soil and groundwater proximity (<15 m)
🏗️ Project Overview
40 MWh lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery storage system on basalt substrate
🎯 Challenge
Thermal runaway residue leaching into porous volcanic soil and groundwater proximity (<15 m)
🔧 Design Approach
Controlled thermal quenching in inert atmosphere; zeolite-amended soil cap with redox potential monitoring; UL 9540A validation prior to disassembly
📐 Key Calculations
Leachate Risk Index (LRI)
(Metal concentration × hydraulic conductivity × depth to water table) / attenuation coefficient
Result: 2.1
Acceptable if <3.0
Zeolite Amendment Rate
Soil CEC × target cation exchange saturation
Result: 12.5 t/ha
Neutralizes Li⁺ and Co²⁺ migration
📊 Results
Zero detectable metal leaching at 12-month monitoring; 100% LFP cathode material recovered; full NFPA 855 compliance achieved💡 Lessons Learned
- •UL 9540A testing must precede physical disassembly
- •Basalt soils require higher zeolite dosing than loams
- •Redox probes must be installed at 0.5m & 1.2m depths
✅ Key Takeaways
- 1UL 9540A testing must precede physical disassembly
- 2Basalt soils require higher zeolite dosing than loams
- 3Redox probes must be installed at 0.5m & 1.2m depths