Low-temperature chlorination roasting technology for the simultaneous recovery of valuable metals from spent LiCoO_(2)cathode material

With the continuous increase in the disposal volume of spent lithium-ion batteries(LIBs),properly recycling spent LIBs has become essential for the advancement of the circular economy.This study presents a systematic analysis of the chlorination roasting kinetics and proposes a new two-step chlorination roasting process that integrates thermodynamics for the recycling of LIB cathode materials.The activation energy for the chloride reaction was 88.41 kJ/mol according to thermogravimetric analysis–derivative thermogravimetry data obtained by using model-free,model-fitting,and Z(α)function(αis conversion rate).Results indicated that the reaction was dominated by the first-order(F1)model when the conversion rate was less than or equal to 0.5 and shifted to the second-order(F2)model when the conversion rate exceeded 0.5.Optimal conditions were determined by thoroughly investigating the effects of roasting temperature,roasting time,and the mass ratio of NH_(4)Cl to LiCoO_(2).Under the optimal conditions,namely 400℃,20 min,and NH_(4)Cl/LiCoO_(2)mass ratio of 3:1,the leaching efficiency of Li and Co reached 99.43% and 99.05%,respectively.Analysis of the roasted products revealed that valuable metals in LiCoO_(2)transformed into CoCl_(2) and LiCl.Furthermore,the reaction mechanism was elucidated,providing insights for the establishment of a novel low-temperature chlorination roasting technology based on a crystal structure perspective.This technology can guide the development of LIB recycling processes with low energy consumption,low secondary pollution,high recovery efficiency,and high added value.

Health Risk Assessment of Employees Exposed to Chlorination By-products of Recreational Water in Large Amusement Parks in Shanghai

Objective Chlorination is often used to disinfect recreational water in large amusement parks;however,the health hazards of chlorination disinfection by-products(DBPs)to occupational populations are unknown.This study aimed to assess the exposure status of chlorinated DBPs in recreational water and the health risks to employees of large amusement parks.Methods Exposure parameters of employees of three large amusement parks in Shanghai were investigated using a questionnaire.Seven typical chlorinated DBPs in recreational water and spray samples were quantified by gas chromatography,and the health risks to amusement park employees exposed to chlorinated DBPs were evaluated according to the WHO's risk assessment framework.Results Trichloroacetic acid,dibromochloromethane,bromodichloromethane,and dichloroacetic acid were detected predominantly in recreational water.The carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risks of the five DBPs did not exceed the risk thresholds.In addition,the carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risks of mixed exposure to DBPs were within the acceptable risk limits.Conclusion Typical DBPs were widely detected in recreational water collected from three large amusement parks in Shanghai;however,the health risks of DBPs and their mixtures were within acceptable limits.

Extraction of lithium from lepidolite using chlorination roasting-water leaching process

Chlorination roasting followed by water leaching process was used to extract lithium from lepidolite.The microstructure of the lepidolite and roasted materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction（XRD）.Various parameters including chlorination roasting temperature,time,type and amount of chlorinating agents were optimized.The conditional experiments indicate that the best mass ratio of lepidolite to NaCl to CaCl2 is 1：0.6：0.4 during the roasting process.The extraction of lithium reaches peak value of 92.86% at 880 °C,potassium,rubidium,and cesium 88.49%,93.60% and 93.01%,respectively.The XRD result indicates that the major phases of the product after roasting lepidolite with mixture of chlorinating agents（CaCl2 and NaCl） are SiO2,CaF2,KCl,CaSiO3,CaAl2Si2O8,NaCl and NaAlSi3O8.

Behavior of titanium dioxide in alumina carbothermic reduction-chlorination process in vacuum

Behaviors of TiO2 in the alumina carbothermic reduction and chlorination process in vacuum at different temperatures were investigated experimentally by means of XRD,SEM and EDS.In the preparation of materials,the molar ratio of Al2O3 to C was 1：4,and 10% TiO2 and excess AlCl3 were added.The results show that TiC is produced by C and TiO2 after TiO2 transforms from anatase into rutile gradually.In the temperature range of 1 763？1 783 K,the compounds of Ti and Al are not found in slags and condensate.The purity of aluminum reaches 98.35%,and TiO2 does not participate in alumina carbothermic reduction process and chlorination process in vacuum.

Maintaining moderate levels of hypochlorous acid promotes neural stem cell proliferation and differentiation in the recovery phase of stroke

It has been shown clinically that continuous removal of ischemia/reperfusion-induced reactive oxygen species is not conducive to the recovery of late stroke.Indeed,previous studies have shown that excessive increases in hypochlorous acid after stroke can cause severe damage to brain tissue.Our previous studies have found that a small amount of hypochlorous acid still exists in the later stage of stroke,but its specific role and mechanism are currently unclear.To simulate stroke in vivo,a middle cerebral artery occlusion rat model was established,with an oxygen-glucose deprivation/reoxygenation model established in vitro to mimic stroke.We found that in the early stage(within 24 hours)of ischemic stroke,neutrophils produced a large amount of hypochlorous acid,while in the recovery phase(10 days after stroke),microglia were activated and produced a small amount of hypochlorous acid.Further,in acute stroke in rats,hypochlorous acid production was prevented using a hypochlorous acid scavenger,taurine,or myeloperoxidase inhibitor,4-aminobenzoic acid hydrazide.Our results showed that high levels of hypochlorous acid(200μM)induced neuronal apoptosis after oxygen/glucose deprivation/reoxygenation.However,in the recovery phase of the middle cerebral artery occlusion model,a moderate level of hypochlorous acid promoted the proliferation and differentiation of neural stem cells into neurons and astrocytes.This suggests that hypochlorous acid plays different roles at different phases of cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.Lower levels of hypochlorous acid(5 and 100μM)promoted nuclear translocation ofβ-catenin.By transfection of single-site mutation plasmids,we found that hypochlorous acid induced chlorination of theβ-catenin tyrosine 30 residue,which promoted nuclear translocation.Altogether,our study indicates that maintaining low levels of hypochlorous acid plays a key role in the recovery of neurological function.

Tomato Yield and Quality and Emitter Clogging as Affected by Chlorination Schemes of Drip Irrigation Systems Applying Sewage Effluent

Chlorination has been recognized as an efficient and economically favorable method for treating clogging in drip emitters caused by biological growth during sewage application. Further important criteria for determining an optimal chlorination scheme are the different responses of crops to the chloride added into the soil through chlorination. During two seasons in 2008 and 2009, field experiments were conducted in a solar-heated greenhouse with drip irrigation systems applying secondary sewage effluent to tomato plants to investigate the influences of chlorine injection intervals and levels on plant growth, yield, fruit quality, and emitter clogging. Injection intervals ranging from 2 to 8 wk and injection concentrations ranging 2-50 mg L-1 of free chlorine residual at the end of the laterals were used. For the 2008 experiments, the yield from the treatments of sewage application with chlorination was 7.5% lower than the yield from the treatment of sewage application without chlorination, while the yields for the treatments with and without chlorination were similar for the 2009 experiments. The statistical tests indicated that neither the chlorine injection intervals and concentrations nor the interactions between the two significantly influenced plant height, leaf area, or tomato yield for both years. The qualities of the fruit in response to chlorination were parameter-dependent. Chlorination did not significantly influence the quality of ascorbic acid, soluble sugar, or soluble acids, but the interaction between the chlorine injection interval and the chlorine concentration significantly influenced the levels of soluble solids. It was also confirmed that chlorination was an effective method for reducing biological clogging. These results suggested that chlorination is safe for a crop that has a moderate sensitivity to chlorine, like tomato, and can maintain a high level of performance in drip irrigation systems applying sewage effluent.

Bromate ion formation in dark chlorination and ultraviolet/chlorination processes for bromide-containing water

Bormate （BrO3^-） is a carcinogenic chemical produced in ozonation or chlorination of bromide-containing water. Although its formation in seawater with or without sunlight has been previously investigated, the formation of bromate in dilute solutions, particularly raw water for water treatment plant, is unknown. In this article, the results of bench scale tests to measure the formation rates of bromate formation in dilute solutions, including de-ionized water and raw water from Yangtze River, were presented in dark chlorination and ultraviolet （UV）/chlorination processes. And the effects of initial pH, initial concentration of NaOCl, and UV light intensity on bromate formation in UV/chlorination of the diluted solutions were investigated. Detectable bromate was formed in dark chlorination of the two water samples with a relatively slow production rate. Under routine disinfecting conditions, the amount of formed bromate is not likely to exceed the national standards （10 μg/L）. UV irradiation enhanced the decay of free chlorine, and, simultaneously, 6.6%-32% of Br^- was oxidized to BrO3^-. And the formation of bromate exhibited three stages： rapid stage, slow stage and plateau. Under the experimental conditions （pH = 4.41-11.07, CCl2= 1.23-4.50 mg/L）, low pH and high chlorine concentration favored the generation of bromate. High light intensity promoted the production rate of bromate, but decreased its total generation amount due to acceleration of chlorine decomposition.

Simultaneous extraction of gold and zinc from refractory carbonaceous gold ore by chlorination roasting process

A novel process based on chlorination roasting was proposed to simultaneously recover gold and zinc from refractory carbonaceous gold ore by using NaCl as chlorination agent.The effects of roasting temperature,roasting time and NaCl content on the volatilization rates of gold and zinc were investigated.The reaction mechanism and the phase transition process were also analyzed by means of SEM,EDS and XRD.The results demonstrated that under the optimal conditions of NaCl content of 10%,roasting temperature of 800℃,roasting time of 4 h and gas flow rate of 1 L/min,the rates of gold and zinc were 92%and 92.56%,respectively.During low-temperature chlorination roasting stage,a certain content of sulfur was beneficial to the chlorination reactions of gold and zinc;and during high-temperature chlorination roasting stage,the crystal structure of vanadium-bearing mica was destroyed,and the vanadium-containing oxides were beneficial to the chlorinating volatilization of gold and zinc.Eventually,the chlorinated volatiles of gold and zinc could be recovered by alkaline solution.

Extraction of metals from complex sulfide nickel concentrates by low-temperature chlorination roasting and water leaching

The recovery of valuable metals from complex sulfide concentrates was investigated via chlorination roasting followed by water leaching. A reaction process is proposed on the basis of previous studies and the results of our preliminary experiments. During the process, various process parameters were studied, including the roasting temperature, the addition of NH4Cl, the roasting time, the leaching time, and the liquid-to-solid ratio. The roasted products and leach residues were characterized by X-ray diffraction and vibrational spectroscopy. Under the optimum condition, 95% of Ni, 98% of Cu, and 88% of Co were recovered. In addition, the removal of iron was studied in the water leaching stage. The results demonstrate that this process provides an effective approach for extracting multiple metals from complex concentrates or ores. © 2017, University of Science and Technology Beijing and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.

Utilization of gold-bearing and iron-rich pyrite cinder via a chlorination–volatilization process

The chlorination-volatilization process has been adopted to make full use of gold-bearing and iron-rich pyrite cinder. However, problems of low recovery rate, pulverization of pellets, and ring formation have been encountered during the industrialization of this process. The effects of various parameters on the volatilization rates of valuable metals and on the compressive strength of roasted pellets were investigated in this paper. The parameters include the CaCl_2 dosage, heating temperature, and holding time. The results show that heating temperature is the most important parameter for the recovery of target metals. More CaCl_2 was needed for the recovery of zinc than for the recovery of gold, silver, and lead. CaCl_2 started to react with sulfides/SO_2/SiO_2 at temperatures below the melting point of CaCl_2 to generate Cl_2/HCl. Gaseous CaCl_2 was formed at higher temperatures and could react with any of the components. The compressive strength of roasted CaCl_2-bearing pellets first decreased slowly with increasing temperature at temperatures lower than 873 K, which could result in the pulverization of pellets during heating. Their compressive strength increased dramatically with increasing temperature at temperatures greater than 1273 K. Certain quantities of CaCl_2 and Fe(Ⅱ) could improve the compressive strength of the roasted pellets; however, the addition of excessive CaCl_2 decreased the compressive strength of pellets.

Thermodynamic analysis and process optimization of zinc and lead recovery from copper smelting slag with chlorination roasting

An efficient chlorination roasting process for recovering zinc(Zn)and lead(Pb)from copper smelting slag was proposed.Thermodynamic models were established,illustrating that Zn and Pb in copper smelting slag can be efficiently recycled during the chlorination roasting process.By decreasing the partial pressure of the gaseous products,chlorination was promoted.The Box−Behnken design was applied to assessing the interactive effects of the process variables and optimizing the chlorination roasting process.CaCl_(2) dosage and roasting temperature and time were used as variables,and metal recovery efficiencies were used as responses.When the roasting temperature was 1172℃ with a CaCl_(2) addition amount of 30 wt.%and a roasting time of 100 min,the predicted optimal recovery efficiencies of Zn and Pb were 87.85%and 99.26%,respectively,and the results were validated by experiments under the same conditions.The residual Zn-and Pb-containing phases in the roasting slags were ZnFe_(2)O_(4),Zn_(2)SiO_(4),and PbS.

Preparation of Novel Dechlorination Adsorbent and Study on Its Adsorption Mechanism

The preparation of novel dechlorination adsorbent by using the modified 13 X molecular sieve and its adsorption mechanism were studied. XRD and SEM analyses showed that the Ag-13 X molecular sieve revealed a new crystal plane,while other molecular sieve samples more or less contained some impurities. The BET data showed that only Ag^+ ions could enlarge the pore size and the pore volume at the same time. The NH_3-TPD diagram showed that the acid sites of the adsorbent increased after its modification by metal ions and only the Ag-13 X molecular sieve generated new medium strong acid sites. According to adsorption experiments conducted at different concentration and temperature, the dechlorination adsorption mechanism of Ag-13 X molecular sieve was a combination of physical adsorption and chemical adsorption which showed the different degree of influence at different temperatures.

Behavior of silver and lead in selective chlorination leaching process of gold-antimony alloy

The behavior of silver and lead in the selective chlorination leaching process of gold-antimony alloy was analyzed in detail and appropriate recovery methods were developed.A reduction method by adding gold-antimony alloy powder was adopted to recover silver according to the thermodynamics calculation.The reducing rate of silver can exceed 99%at 80℃for 1.5 h when the dosage of gold-antimony alloy powder is 10%.The dissolution equilibrium curved surfaces of PbSO4 and PbCl2 under different conditions were drawn.The experimental results are well consistent with theoretical analysis that indicate lead may be precipitated in the form of lead chloride.The grade of gold in the residue can be further concentrated to 94.5%after being washed with hot water. These two methods have been applied successfully in the practice.

Chlorination strategy on polymer donors toward efficient solar conversions

Bulk heterojunction(BHJ)polymer solar cells(PSCs)are promising candidates for next-generation solar cells.Benefitting from the persistent efforts in material design and synthesis,systematic device engineering and fundamental understanding of the device physics,the power conversion efficiency(PCE)of single PSC has been pushed to surpass 15%,and that of the tandem PSCs is over 17%.Recently,chlorination has drawn much interest and the chlorinated PSCs have been frequently reported in donor-acceptor(D-A)type conjugated polymers.This review summarizes the recent progress of the chlorinated strategy for highly efficient photovoltaic applications.We firstly discuss the chlorination on the acceptor units in D-A type donor polymers,emphasizing the 4 widely used acceptor units with their improved PCE.secondly,the chlorination on the donor units will be discussed,mainly focusing on the chlorination of benzo[1,2-b:4,b]dithiophene(BDT)unit and 2,2-bithiophene unit.Remarkably,the PCE of the chlorinated BDT-based device has been improved to over 14%.Overall,this review discusses the structure-property correlations of these chlorinated polymers in photovoltaic study,which could further provide guidance on the chlorinated strategy and the molecular design for high-performance photovoltaic devices.

Simultaneous Control of Microorganisms and Disinfection By-products by Sequential Chlorination

Objective To introduce a new sequential chlorination disinfection process in which short-term free chlorine and chloramine are sequentially added. Methods Pilot tests of this sequential chlorination were carried out in a drinking water plant. Results The sequential chlorination disinfection process had the same or better efficiency on microbe （including virus） inactivation compared with the free chlorine disinfection process. There seemed to be some synergetic disinfection effect between free chlorine and monochloramine because they attacked different targets. The sequential chlorination disinfection process resulted in 35.7%-77.0% TTHM formation and 36.6%-54.8% THAA5 formation less than the free chlorination process. The poorer the water quality was, the more advantage the sequential chlorination disinfection had over the free chlorination. Conclusion This process takes advantages of free chlorine＇s quick inactivation of microorganisms and chloramine＇s low disinfection by-product （DBP） yield and long-term residual effect, allowing simultaneous control of microbes and DBPs in an effective and economic way.

Recovering germanium from coal ash by chlorination with ammonium chloride

A new process of enriching germanium from coal ash was developed. The processinvolves in mixing the coal ash and ammonium chloride and then roasting the mixture to producegermanium chloride that is then absorbed by dilute hydrochloric acid and hydrolyzed to germaniumoxide. The germanium recovery reached to 80.2% at the optimum condition: mass ratio of NH_4Cl/coalash is 0.15, roasting temperature 400℃ and roasting time 90 min.

Kinetics of leaching refractory gold ores by ultrasonic-assisted electro-chlorination

The resources of refractory gold ores are abundant, and their effective treatment can bring good economic benefits. This paper investigated the kinetics of leaching gold from refractory gold ores by ultrasonic-assisted electro-chlorination. The effects of ultrasound time ratio, initial hydrochloric acid concentration and leaching temperature on the kinetic parameters were discussed. It is found that the leaching ratio goes up with all the factors increasing. The reaction kinetics is controlled by diffusion. When ultrasound improves the diffusion by reducing the diffusion resistance, the activation energy increases to 37.1 kJ/mol.

Researches on Formation of Haloacetic Acids in Chlorination of Drinking Water by a Novel Technique

Haloacetic acids(HAAs) are formed during the chlorination of drinking water,which are harmful to people′s health due to their carcinogenic and mutagenic effects. In the present study,a detection method combining methyl tert -butyl ether(MtBE) extraction with acid catalysis and gas chromatography coupled with an electron capture detector(GC/ECD) was developed for determining HAAs. The detection limit of this method(MDL) and relative standard deviation(RSD) were below 0.37 μg/L and 6.2%,respectively. The laboratory chlorination experiments were conducted with the purpose of investigating the influences of reaction time,temperature,UV_ 254 ,bromide and ammonia-nitrogen on the formation of HAAs. The results show that the formation amount of HAAs increases with increasing reaction time and temperature,respectively;and there exists a linear relationship between the formation of HAAs and UV_ 254 . The formation amount of HAAs decreases first and then increases as the bromide ion concentration increases,and adding NH +_4 is a possible way to control the formation of HAAs.

Co-extraction of valuable metals and kinetics analysis in chlorination process of low-grade nickel-copper sulfide ore

To efficiently co-extract Ni and Cu from low-grade nickel-copper sulfide ore,chlorination roasting with NH;Cl followed by a water leaching process was investigated.The results show that 98.4%Ni and 98.5%Cu can be synchronously extracted when the ore particle size is 75-80μm,the roasting time is 2 h,the mass ratio of NH;Cl to ore is 1.6:1 and the roasting temperature is 550°C.The evolution behavior of various minerals was elucidated using X-ray diffraction(XRD)coupled with scanning electron microscopy(SEM).The kinetics of the chlorination process based on the differential thermal and thermogravimetric analysis(DTA-TG)data was analyzed by Kissinger method and Flynn-Wall-Ozawa(FWO)method.The chlorination process of low-grade nickel-copper sulfide ore mainly contains two stages:the decomposition of NH;Cl and the chlorination of ore.The maximum apparent activation energies(Ea)at two stages are determined to be 114.8 and 144.6 kJ/mol,respectively.The condensed product of exhaust gas is determined to be ammonium chloride,which can be recycled as the reactant again,making the process economic and clean.

Combining chlorination and sulfuration strategies for high-performance all-small-molecule organic solar cells

Three small-molecule donors based on dithieno [2,3-d:2’,3 ’-d’]-benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b’] dithiophene(DTBDT)unit were designed and synthesized by side chain regulation with chlorinated or/and sulfurated substitutions(namely ZR1,ZR1-Cl,and ZR1-S-Cl respectively),along with a crystalline non-fullerene acceptor IDIC-4 Cl with a chlorinated 1,1-dicyanomethylene-3-indanone(IC) end group.Energy levels,molar extinction coefficients and crystallinities of three donor molecules can be effectively altered by combining chlorination and sulfuration strategies.Especially,the ZR1-S-Cl exhibited the best absorption ability,lowest higher occupied molecular orbital(HOMO) energy level and highest crystallinity among three donors,resulting in the corresponding all-small-molecule organic solar cells to produce a high power conversion efficiency(PCE) of 12.05% with IDIC-4 Cl as an acceptor.