A closed-loop process for recycling LiNixCoyMn(1âxây)O2 from mixed cathode materials of lithium-ion batteries

With the rapid development of consumer electronics and electric vehicles (EV), a large number of spent lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have been generated worldwide. Thus, effective recycling technologies to recapture a significant amount of valuable metals contained in spent LIBs are highly desirable to prevent the environmental pollution and resource depletion. In this work, a novel recycling technology to regenerate a LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 cathode material from spent LIBs with different cathode chemistries has been developed. By dismantling, crushing, leaching and impurity removing, the LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 (selected as an example of LiNixCoyMn(1âxây)O2) powder can be directly prepared from the purified leaching solution via co-precipitation followed by solid-state synthesis. For comparison purposes, a fresh-synthesized sample with the same composition has also been prepared using the commercial raw materials via the same method. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and electrochemical measurements have been carried out to characterize these samples. The electrochemical test result suggests that the re-synthesized sample delivers cycle performance and low rate capability which are comparable to those of the fresh-synthesized sample. This novel recycling technique can be of great value to the regeneration of a pure and marketable LiNixCoyMn(1âxây)O2 cathode material with low secondary pollution. Keywords: Spent lithium-ion battery, Cathode material recycling, Acid leaching, Purification, Co-precipitatio

Purification and Characterization of Reclaimed Electrolytes from Spent Lithium-Ion Batteries

As an indispensable part of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), closed-loop recycling, reusing the electrolyte from spent LIBs, has not yet been fulfilled experimentally. Herein, this paper presents a LIB electrolyte recycling approach which consists of supercritical CO₂ extraction, resin, and molecular sieve purification and components supplements. The resultant electrolyte exhibited a high ionic conductivity of 0.19 mS·cm^–1 at 20 °C, which was very close to a commercial electrolyte with the same composition. Moreover, the electrolyte was also electrochemically stable up to 5.4 V (vs Li/Li⁺) in the linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) measurement. The application potential of reclaimed electrolyte was demonstrated by Li/LiCoO₂ battery presenting the initial discharge capacity of 115 mAh·g^–1 with a capacity retention of 66% after 100 cycles at 0.2 C. This investigation is a crucial break for electrolyte recycling and opens a bright route toward realizing closed-loop LIB recycling