The Li-ion battery (LIB) is the state-of-the-art technology for electronic devices and vehicles due to its high energy density, fast charging and long cycle life. With the growing interest in electric mobility, the production as well as the waste of LIBs and its components are rising steadily. Both, the battery itself and individual battery components such as the cathode material pose a risk to the environment in the case of inadequate recycling strategies. These hazards can affect the air, soil and the aquatic system and thus also lead to exposure of animals, humans and microorganisms. Here it is shown, that the cathode material LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 (NCM111) causes toxic effects in the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, one of the most abundant organisms in fresh waters. The uptake of the metals Li, Ni, Mn and Co, as well as the concentration change of the important endogenous metals Mg (chlorophyll) and Cu (co-factors) due to NCM111 exposure were analyzed using single cell-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (scICP-MS). It is shown that scICP-MS is a useful method to detect the response of the cell to toxic xenobiotics.