Perfecting the EV battery recycling process

Date:
February 22, 2022
Source:
Chalmers University of Technology
Summary:
Recycling of electric car batteries can be easier, cheaper, and more
environmentally friendly, according to a new scientific article,
which outlines an optimized recycling process. The research
represents a vital step towards the electromobility society of
the future.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Recycling of electric car batteries can be easier, cheaper, and more environmentally friendly, according to a new scientific article
from Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, which outlines an
optimised recycling process. The research, published in the journal Waste Management, has been carried out by some of the world's foremost experts
in the field, and represents a vital step towards the electromobility
society of the future.


==========================================================================
As the use of electric vehicles (EVs) increases, recycling and recovery processes for EV batteries and the critical raw metals used in their
production are becoming an increasingly important area of research. One
method that currently attracts a lot of interest is a combination of
thermal pretreatment and hydrometallurgy, in which aqueous chemistry is
used to recover the metals.

Several companies are developing systems that will use this combination,
but the researchers at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden,
discovered that these companies use widely differing temperatures
and times in their processes, and that there was a great need for
a comparative study to determine the optimal thermal treatment and hydrometallurgical process for recycling lithium- ion batteries.

30 minutes and room temperature can suffice A key finding of the new
study was that the hydrometallurgical process can be carried out at room temperature. This is something that has not been previously tested before,
but can yield major benefits in the form of reduced environmental impacts
and lower costs for recycling the batteries. The process can also be
carried out significantly quicker than previously thought.

"Our research can make a huge difference for developers in this area. In
some cases it can be as much as reducing the temperature from between
60 and 80 degrees Celsius, down to room temperature, and from several
hours to just 30 minutes," says Burcak Ebin, researcher at the Department
for Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at Chalmers and one of the main
authors of the article.

The researchers investigated how the different steps -- thermal
pretreatment and hydrometallurgy -are affected by each other. An
important comparison was made between two different approaches to thermal pre-treatment -- incineration or pyrolysis. The latter is without oxygen
and is considered more environmentally friendly, and the researchers
determined that this gave the best results.

"To meet the huge need for battery recycling that is coming, the processes currently in use must be made as effective and efficient as possible,
so this study offers invaluable knowledge for the manufacturers and
operators of this technology. The methods we present can also be used to optimise the recycling of all kinds of lithium-ion batteries," explains
Martina Petranikova, Associate Professor at the Department of Chemistry
and Chemical Engineering at Chalmers, who has also worked with Northvolt,
one of Europe's largest battery manufacturers, helping to develop and
implement their recycling processes.

Continued optimisation crucial for the field If recycling of electric
car batteries is to reach the volumes required for the future, the
costs must be radically reduced. Improving the processes is therefore
a crucial challenge.

"To reduce the costs, we need to cut the steps in the recycling
process. We are working on several projects with that aim right now,
and close collaborations and good communication between researchers and
the developers of the technology will be extremely important for us to
succeed with the challenges we face," says Martina Petranikova.

An example of this is visible in connection to a new trend that has spread among the producers of EV batteries -- solid state batteries. These
batteries contain significantly more different metals, which makes the recycling much harder.

"As researchers we see a vital need to agree on a global standard for
a maximum number of metals in these batteries," says Martina Petranikova.

special promotion Explore the latest scientific research on sleep and
dreams in this free online course from New Scientist -- Sign_up_now_>>> ========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by
Chalmers_University_of_Technology. Note: Content may be edited for style
and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Martina Petranikova, Pol Llorach Naharro, Natha'lia Vieceli,
Gabriele
Lombardo, Burc,ak Ebin. Recovery of critical metals from EV
batteries via thermal treatment and leaching with sulphuric acid
at ambient temperature. Waste Management, 2022; 140: 164 DOI:
10.1016/ j.wasman.2021.11.030 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/02/220222134712.htm

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