Unit-Process Life Cycle Costing: A Standardized Benchmarking Framework for Chemical Recovery Processes in the Battery Circular Economy

July 2026, Paper: "Battery-grade critical raw materials (CRM) recovery in the circular economy attracts billions in investment — yet the economic data used to compare technologies are unreliable. Cost estimates for spodumene-to- Li₂CO₃ — the most studied pathway — diverge substantially, with published estimates ranging from €3,500 to €8,000 per tonne across studies using nominally identical feedstocks and processes. Evidence from three harmonized studies illustrates that a substantial portion of the observed spread is methodological, not technological: inconsistent system boundaries, omitted cost drivers, and opacity in physical-intensity reporting are masquerading as genuine performance differences.

This paper introduces Unit-Process Life Cycle Costing (Unit-Process LCC): a standardized, gate-to-gate benchmarking framework for chemical conversion processes in battery value chains. Its core innovation is mandatory separation of a physical-intensity layer (kg reagent/kg product, kWh/kg, kg waste/kg) from a price layer, combined with a fixed sector-specific reference product unit — enabling cross-study comparison independent of price assumptions.

I apply the framework in a diagnostic reconciliation of three published Route A studies, showing that approximately half of their apparent cost divergence traces to three boundary inconsistencies — not genuine process differences. This demonstrates that LCA papers reporting physical intensities can be repurposed directly for cost benchmarking under Unit-Process LCC — no new primary data required. A structured comparison of Routes A and B reveals a €1.04/kg cost advantage for soda-based leaching, driven by lower thermal energy and waste treatment burdens.

The framework is accompanied by an open Excel template and compliance checklist. Unit-Process LCC gives investors, engineers, and regulators a common language for technology selection in the battery circular economy.

Although demonstrated here for two process routes within spodumene-based conversion — one of the two dominant global lithium feedstock pathways — the framework applies directly to brine-based lithium extraction and to other CRM recovery routes, including cobalt, nickel, and manganese."