An increase in the use of electric vehicles (EVs) is increasing the number of waste batteries. Under these circumstances, Korean researchers have developed a new technology to recycle them in an eco-friendly way.
On Dec. 7, the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM) announced that researchers at KIGAM’s Resource Utilization Research Center have successfully developed the world’s first recycling technology for waste lithium-phosphate-iron (LFP) using a low-temperature dry method. As LFP batteries are expected to account for more than 55 percent of the world’s electric vehicle batteries by 2030, it is imperative to develop recycling technology for waste LFP batteries.
Currently, most commercially available recycling technologies target nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) or nickel-cobalt-aluminum (NCA) batteries. The batteries are mechanically crushed, dried, sorted, and heat-treated in a series of complex steps. This process finally results in black mass in the form of graphite and black powder, which needs to be separated from graphite because recycling requires a black mass from which minerals can be extracted. However, the process of removing the graphite involves chemicals and water, creating slag and wastewater. Batteries are also crushed and then melted at 1,400 degrees in nitrogen or air to produce cobalt, nickel and copper alloys, a process that is not possible with LFP.
The new technology, on the other hand, can separate and recover more than 80 percent of black mass and graphite by shredding LFP waste batteries, then partially melting and sieving them, the researchers explained. Compared to the existing battery recycling process, the new way is much simpler. The absence of chemicals and water means that there is no sludge or wastewater. Carbon dioxide emissions can also significantly shrink because no nitrogen is required for melting and graphite can be separated by lowering temperature to 1,200 degrees, they added.
“This technology can also be applied to NCM or NCA batteries,” said Kim Byung-soo who orchestrated this research project. “It is easier to operate than the current process and has the advantage of low facility investment costs because it uses low temperatures. We will do our best to secure competitiveness in the eco-friendly resource business by advancing technology to increase the recovery rate of lithium compounds to high purity and actively transferring the technology to companies.”