One of the emerging issues in this modern age, when the number of electronic waste is escalating day by day, is addressing the growing quantity of end-of-life Li-ion battery (LIB) waste. In particular, the spent LIBs contain toxic yet valuable transition metals (e.g., Ni, Co, and Mn) and harmful HF as the side reaction product. Discarding the spent LIBs into the landfill is not preferable as it will endanger the environment by contaminating water, soil, and atmosphere. On the other hand, the valuable metals contained in the cathode of spent LIB may benefit if handled properly via recycling activities. For these reasons, recycling is considered the best option to mitigate the accumulation of spent LIBs in the future.

We have developed a green and environmentally friendly cathode recycling procedure via hydrometallurgical technique by utilizing organic acids and organic reducing agents to extract valuable metals. The materials obtained from this process can be used to resynthesize the cathode to be assembled together with other battery components. The resynthesized cathode delivers excellent electrochemical properties comparable to the fresh cathode with the same chemical composition. This research reveals that, rather than relying entirely on mining products, materials produced through recycling can be used as a new source for cathode production.

Recent Pbications:

1. Regeneration of LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 Cathode Active Materials from End-of-Life Lithium-Ion Batteries through Ascorbic Acid Leaching and Oxalic Acid Coprecipitation Processes. ACS Sustain. Chem. Eng. 8, 43, 16104–16114 (2020)