Study on metal recovery process and kinetics of oxidative leaching from spent LiFePO_(4)Li-batteries

A green environmental protection and enhanced leaching process was proposed to recover all elements from spent lithium iron phosphate(LiFePO_(4)) lithium batteries.In order to reduce the influence of Al impurity in the recovery process,NaOH was used to remove impurity.After impurity removal,the spent LiFePO_(4) cathode material was used as raw material under the H_(2)SO_(4) system,and the pressure oxidation leaching process was adopted to achieve the preferential leaching of lithium.The E-pH diagram of the Fe-P-Al-H_(2)O system can determine the stable region of each element in the recovery process of spent LiFePO_(4)Li-batteries.Under the optimal conditions(500 r·min^(-1),15 h,363.15 K,0.4 MPa,the liquid-solid ratio was 4:1 ml·g^(-1)and the acid-material ratio was 0.29),the leaching rate of Li was 99.24%,Fe,Al,and Ti were 0.10%,2.07%,and 0.03%,respectively.The Fe and P were precipitated and recovered as FePO_(4)·2H_(2)O.The kinetic analysis shows that the process of high-pressure acid leaching of spent LiFePO_(4) materials depends on the surface chemical reaction.Through the life cycle assessment(LCA)of the spent LiFePO_(4) whole recovery process,eight midpoint impact categories were selected to assess the impact of recovery process.The results can provide basic environmental information on production process for recycling industry.

A perspective on carbon materials for future energy application

Nanocarbon materials play a critical role in the development of new or improved technologies and devices for sustainable production and use of renewable energy. This perspective paper defines some of the trends and outlooks in this exciting area, with the effort of evidencing some of the possibilities offered from the growing level of knowledge, as testified from the exponentially rising number of publications, and putting bases for a more rational design of these nanomaterials. The basic members of the new carbon family are fullerene, graphene, and carbon nanotube. Derived from them are carbon quantum dots, nanohorn, nanofiber, nano ribbon, nanocapsulate, nanocage and other nanomorphologies. Second generation nanocarbons are those which have been modified by surface functionalization or doping with heteroatoms to create specific tailored properties. The third generation of nanocarbons is the nanoarchitectured supramolecular hybrids or composites of the first and second genera- tion nanocarbons, or with organic or inorganic species. The advantages of the new carbon materials, relating to the field of sustainable energy, are discussed, evidencing the unique properties that they offer for developing next generation solar devices and energy storage solutions.

A single dual-mode gas sensor for early safety warning of Li-ion batteries:Micro-scale Li dendrite and electrolyte leakage

Li dendrites and electrolyte leakage are common causes of Li-ion battery failure.H_(2),generated by Li dendrites,and electrolyte vapors have been regarded as gas markers of the early safety warning of Li-ion batteries.SnO_(2)-based gas sensors,widely used for a variety of applications,are promising for the early safety detection of Li-ion batteries,which are necessary and urgently required for the development of Li-ion battery systems.However,the traditional SnO_(2)sensor,with a single signal,cannot demonstrate intelligent multi-gas recognition.Here,a single dual-mode(direct and alternating current modes)SnO_(2)sensor demonstrates clear discrimination of electrolyte vapors and H_(2),released in different states of Li-ion batteries,together with principal component analysis(PCA)analysis.This work provides insight into the intelligent technology of single gas sensors.

Architecting Pyrenyl-graphdiyne Nanowalls for High Capacity and Long-life Lithium Storage

Graphdiyne,as the novel carbon allotrope,which is composed of sp^(2)-and sp-hybridized carbon,has exhibited excellent catalytic activity and conductivity.It has been applied in series of fields,such as Li-battery,catalyst and energy conversion.Expanding well-defined structures and useful applications of graphdiyne is still full of challenges in material chemistry.Herein,we optimized the synthesis condition of pyrenylgraphdiyne to obtain the nanowall structure.Compared with the typical nanosheet structure,the pyrenyl-graphdiyne nanowalls(Pyr-GDY-NWs)have more area for lithium insertion.Lithium-ion battery featuring Pyr-GDY-NWs-based electrode exhibits a high reversible specific capacity up to 1464 mA·h/g,which is triple than that of the commercial graphite.We also used the theoretical calculation to investigate the mechanism of Li storage in Pyr-GDY-NWs.The experiment and theoretical data showed that Pyr-GDY-NWs had the potential application in lithium batteries.Therefore,Pyr-GDY with a defined structure would be applied in energy storage and energy conversion.