Direct recycling of Li-ion batteries from cell to pack level:Challenges and prospects on technology,scalability,sustainability,and economics

Direct recycling is a novel approach to overcoming the drawbacks of conventional lithium-ion battery(LIB)recycling processes and has gained considerable attention from the academic and industrial sectors in recent years.The primary objective of directly recycling LIBs is to efficiently recover and restore the active electrode materials and other components in the solid phase while retaining electrochemical performance.This technology's advantages over traditional pyrometallurgy and hydrometallurgy are costeffectiveness,energy efficiency,and sustainability,and it preserves the material structure and morphology and can shorten the overall recycling path.This review extensively discusses the advancements in the direct recycling of LIBs,including battery sorting,pretreatment processes,separation of cathode and anode materials,and regeneration and quality enhancement of electrode materials.It encompasses various approaches to successfully regenerate high-value electrode materials and streamlining the recovery process without compromising their electrochemical properties.Furthermore,we highlight key challenges in direct recycling when scaled from lab to industries in four perspectives:(1)battery design,(2)disassembling,(3)electrode delamination,and(4)commercialization and sustainability.Based on these challenges and changing market trends,a few strategies are discussed to aid direct recycling efforts,such as binders,electrolyte selection,and alternative battery designs;and recent transitions and technological advancements in the battery industry are presented.

Simultaneous purification of minor components in natural products using twin-column recycling chromatography with a step solvent gradient

The isolation of minor components from complex natural product matrices presents a significant challenge in the field of purification science due to their low concentrations and the presence of structurally similar compounds.This study introduces an optimized twin-column recycling chromatography method for the efficient and simultaneous purification of these elusive constituents.By introducing water at a small flowing rate between the twin columns,a step solvent gradient is created,by which the leading edge of concentration band would migrate at a slower rate than the trailing edge as it flowing from the upstream to downstream column.Hence,the band broadening is counterbalanced,resulting in an enrichment effect for those minor components in separation process.Herein,two target substances,which showed similar peak position in high performance liquid chromatography(HPLC)and did not exceed 1.8%in crude paclitaxel were selected as target compounds for separation.By using the twin-column recycling chromatography with a step solvent gradient,a successful purification was achieved in getting the two with the purity almost 100%.We suggest this method is suitable for the separation of most components in natural produces,which shows higher precision and recovery rate compared with the common lab-operated separation ways for natural products(thin-layer chromatography and prep-HPLC).

Comparison of isotope-based linear and Bayesian mixing models in determining moisture recycling ratio

Stable water isotopes are natural tracers quantifying the contribution of moisture recycling to local precipitation,i.e.,the moisture recycling ratio,but various isotope-based models usually lead to different results,which affects the accuracy of local moisture recycling.In this study,a total of 18 stations from four typical areas in China were selected to compare the performance of isotope-based linear and Bayesian mixing models and to determine local moisture recycling ratio.Among the three vapor sources including advection,transpiration,and surface evaporation,the advection vapor usually played a dominant role,and the contribution of surface evaporation was less than that of transpiration.When the abnormal values were ignored,the arithmetic averages of differences between isotope-based linear and the Bayesian mixing models were 0.9%for transpiration,0.2%for surface evaporation,and–1.1%for advection,respectively,and the medians were 0.5%,0.2%,and–0.8%,respectively.The importance of transpiration was slightly less for most cases when the Bayesian mixing model was applied,and the contribution of advection was relatively larger.The Bayesian mixing model was found to perform better in determining an efficient solution since linear model sometimes resulted in negative contribution ratios.Sensitivity test with two isotope scenarios indicated that the Bayesian model had a relatively low sensitivity to the changes in isotope input,and it was important to accurately estimate the isotopes in precipitation vapor.Generally,the Bayesian mixing model should be recommended instead of a linear model.The findings are useful for understanding the performance of isotope-based linear and Bayesian mixing models under various climate backgrounds.

Development of sustainable and efficient recycling technology for spent Li-ion batteries: Traditional and transformation go hand in hand

Clean and efficient recycling of spent lithium-ion batteries(LIBs)has become an urgent need to promote sustainable and rapid development of human society.Therefore,we provide a critical and comprehensive overview of the various technologies for recycling spent LIBs,starting with lithium-ion power batteries.Recent research on raw material collection,metallurgical recovery,separation and purification is highlighted,particularly in terms of all aspects of economic efficiency,energy consumption,technology transformation and policy management.Mechanisms and pathways for transformative full-component recovery of spent LIBs are explored,revealing a clean and efficient closed-loop recovery mechanism.Optimization methods are proposed for future recycling technologies,with a focus on how future research directions can be industrialized.Ultimately,based on life-cycle assessment,the challenges of future recycling are revealed from the LIBs supply chain and stability of the supply chain of the new energy battery industry to provide an outlook on clean and efficient short process recycling technologies.This work is designed to support the sustainable development of the new energy power industry,to help meet the needs of global decarbonization strategies and to respond to the major needs of industrialized recycling.

Intelligent Garbage Recycling: Design and Implementation Exploration of Automatic Classification System

This paper introduces an intelligent waste recycling automatic classification system,which integrates sensors,image recognition,and robotic arms to achieve automatic identification and classification of waste.The system monitors the composition and properties of waste in real time through sensors,and uses image recognition technology for precise classification,and the robotic arm is responsible for grabbing and disposing.The design and implementation of the system have important practical significance and application value,and help promote the popularization and standardization of waste classification.This paper details the system s architecture,module division,sensors and recognition technology,robotic arm and grabbing technology,data processing and control system,and testing and optimization process.Experimental results show that the system has efficient waste recycling efficiency and accuracy in practical applications,bringing new development opportunities to the waste recycling industry.

Increasing Threat of Scarcity Prompts Rise in Water Recycling

In January 2018,construction wrapped on Salesforce Tower(Fig.1),a 61-story office building that now dominates the skyline of San Francisco,CA,USA.In addition to being the tallest building in the city,Salesforce Tower is the largest structure in the world with an onsite water recycling system.Built by the Australian com-pany Aquacell(Milton,NSW,Australia),the system cleans 113 m^(3)of sewage,sink,shower,and other wastewater each day for use in irrigation and flushing toilets,saving an estimated 35000 m?of water anmually[1].The building is just one of dozens in San Fran-cisco outitted with their own water recycling systems,thanks to a city mandate enacted in 2015[1].

Pyrometallurgical recycling of end-of-life lithium-ion batteries

The global importance of lithium-ion batteries(LIBs)has been increasingly underscored with the advancement of high-performance energy storage technologies.However,the end-of-life of these batteries poses significant challenges from environmental,economic,and resource management perspectives.This review paper focuses on the pyrometallurgy-based recycling process of lithium-ion batteries,exploring the fundamental understanding of this process and the importance of its optimization.Centering on the high energy consumption and emission gas issues of the pyrometallurgical recycling process,we systematically analyzed the capital-intensive nature of this process and the resulting technological characteristics.Furthermore,we conducted an in-depth discussion on the future research directions to overcome the existing technological barriers and limitations.This review will provide valuable insights for researchers and industry stakeholders in the battery recycling field.

An efficient and mild recycling of waste melamine formaldehyde foams by alkaline hydrolysis

Melamine formaldehyde foam(MFF)generates many poisonous chemicals through the traditional recycling methods for organic resin wastes.Herein,a high MFF degradation ratio of ca.97 wt.%was achieved under the mild conditions(160℃)in a NaOH–H2O system with ammelide and ammeline as the main degradation products.The alkaline solvent had an obvious corrosion effect for MFF,as indicated by scanning electron microscopy(SEM).The reaction process and products distribution were studied by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy(FTIR),X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS),and ^(13)C nuclear magnetic resonance(NMR).Besides,the MFF degradation products that have the similar chemical structures and bonding performances to those of melamine can be directly used as the raw material for synthesis of melamine urea-formaldehyde resins(MUFs).Moreover,the degradation system demonstrated here showed the high degradation efficiency after reusing for 7 times.The degradation process generated few harmful pollutants and no pre-or post-treatments were required,which proves its feasibility in the safe removal or recovery of waste MFF.

Progress,challenges,and prospects of spent lithium-ion batteries recycling:A review

The recycling and reutilization of spent lithium-ion batteries(LIBs)have become an important measure to alleviate problems like resource scarcity and environmental pollution.Although some progress has been made,battery recycling technology still faces challenges in terms of efficiency,effectiveness and environmental sustainability.This review aims to systematically review and analyze the current status of spent LIB recycling,and conduct a detailed comparison and evaluation of different recycling processes.In addition,this review introduces emerging recycling techniques,including deep eutectic solvents,molten salt roasting,and direct regeneration,with the intent of enhancing recycling efficiency and diminishing environmental repercussions.Furthermore,to increase the added value of recycled materials,this review proposes the concept of upgrading recycled materials into high value-added functional materials,such as catalysts,adsorbents,and graphene.Through life cycle assessment,the paper also explores the economic and environmental impacts of current battery recycling and highlights the importance that future recycling technologies should achieve a balance between recycling efficiency,economics and environmental benefits.Finally,this review outlines the opportunities and challenges of recycling key materials for next-generation batteries,and proposes relevant policy recommendations to promote the green and sustainable development of batteries,circular economy,and ecological civilization.

Analysis of the Characteristics of Materials Obtained by Recycling Scrap Metal in Guinea

The aim of this study was to determine the quality of rebar produced from recycled scrap metal collected throughout the country,and imported rebar sold in the Republic of Guinea.To do this,the samples were subjected to various mechanical tests involving traction,bending and microscopic analysis.In the Lambanyi and Casse Sonfonia samples,all the tensile strength values for diameters 12,14 and 16 were above 550 MPa.Conversely,the iron samples from Baillobaye and the 10 mm diameters of the samples from Casse Sonfonio and Lambanyi have less appreciable values.The limits of elasticity were determined.The various values found vary more or less from the conventional yield strength of the NF A35-016 reference supplied by CBITEC,which is 500 MPa.Microscopic analysis gives us an insight into the internal structure of the iron samples used.This study may provide the company and the vendors with an alternative for their improvements.

Green recycling of short-circuited garnet-type electrolyte for high-performance solid-state lithium batteries

Solid-state lithium batteries(SSLBs)solve safety issues and are potentially energy-dense alternatives to next-generation energy storage systems.Battery green recycling routes are responsible for the widespread use of SSLBs due to minimizing environmental contamination,reducing production costs,and providing a sustainable solution for resources,e.g.,saving rare earth elements(La,Ta,etc.).Herein,a solid-state recycling strategy is proposed to achieve green recycling of the crucial component solidstate electrolytes(SSEs)in spent SSLBs.The short-circuited garnet Li_(6.5)La_(3)Zr_(1.5)Ta_(0.5)O_(12)(LLZTO)is broken into fine particles and mixed with fresh particles to improve sintering activity and achieve high packing density.The continuous Li absorption process promotes sufficient grain fusion and guarantees the transformation from tetragonal phase to pure cubic phase for high-performance recycled LLZTO.The Li-ion conductivity reaches 5.80×10^(-4)S cm-1with a relative density of 95.9%.Symmetric Li cell with asrecycled LLZTO shows long-term cycling stability for 700 h at 0.3 mA cm^(-2)without any voltage hysteresis.Full cell exhibits an excellent cycling performance with a discharge capacity of 141.5 mA h g^(-1)and a capacity retention of 92.1%after 400 cycles(0.2C).This work develops an environmentally friendly and economically controllable strategy to recycle SSE from spent SSLBs,guiding future directions of SSLBs large-scale industrial application and green recycling study.

China Announces its First Trial Project on Standardizing the Recycling Economy

According to an announcement made by the Standardization Administration of the PRC (SAC)on March 21, 2007, the organization has given approval to Blue Sky Ecological Agriculture Development Co., Ltd., for a trial run at standardizing the recycling economy, the first such trial project in China.……

A CO_(2)-controllable phase change absorbent solvent used to waste recycling of dining lampblack

Dining lampblack as a source of atmospheric pollution,urban residents had to spend a lot of economic costs all year round to solve its impact.However,traditional treatment methods often carry the risk of secondary pollution.The use of phase change absorption solvent(PCAS)controlled by CO_(2)can effectively absorb the oily components in dining lampblack,and smoothly avoid the generation of secondary pollutants and squandering of resources.The reversibility of PCASs under CO_(2)control was explained by pH changes and macroscopic visualizations.The absorption effects of favorable absorbents and PCASs on dining lampblack were compared and analyzed.The fatty acid(FA)in the oil absorption mixture was desorbed by interacting with D230.The results of GC/MS analysis on the oil components separated by desorption showed that the desorption of PCASs was effective for these refractory oil components.FAs can be enriched and applied to the subsequent dining lampblack treatment link to realize the waste recycling.In addition,the absorption and desorption of oily components by PCASs were combined with the CO_(2)-controlled phase transformation of PCASs itself to achieve the absorption circulation of treating dining lampblack by using PCASs.

High-Throughput Pb Recycling for Perovskite Solar Cells Using Biomimetic Whitlockite

Pb contamination in aquatic environments causes severe pollution;therefore,harmless absorbents are required.In this study,we report a novel synthesis of whitlockite(WH,Ca_(18)Mg_(2)(HPO_(4))_(2)(PO_(4))_(12)),which is the second most abundant biomineral in human bone,and its application as a high-performing Pb^(2+)absorbent.Hydroxyapatite(HAP)and WH are prepared via a simple precipitation method.The Pb2+absorption performance and mechanism of the synthesized biominerals are investigated in aqueous solutions at neutral pH.The results demonstrate that WH exhibits an excellent Pb2+absorption capacity of 2339 mg g^(−1),which is 1.68 times higher than the recorded value for HAP.Furthermore,the absorbed Pb^(2+) ions are recycled into high-purity PbI_(2).This is employed as a precursor for the fabrication of perovskite solar cells(PSCs),resulting in a conversion efficiency of 19.00%comparable to that of commercial PbI2 powder(99.99%purity).Our approach provides an efficient way to remove Pb^(2+)ions from water and reuse them in the recycling of PSCs.

Industrial Recycling Process of Batteries for EVs

The growing number of decarbonization standards in the transportation sector has resulted in an increase in demand for electric cars.Renewable energy sources have the ability to bring the fossil fuel age to an end.Electrochemical storage devices,particularly lithium-ion batteries,are critical for this transition’s success.This is owing to a combination of favorable characteristics such as high energy density and minimal self-discharge.Given the environmental degradation caused by hazardous wastes and the scarcity of some resources,recycling used lithium-ion batteries has significant economic and practical importance.Many efforts have been undertaken in recent years to recover cathode materials(such as high-value metals like cobalt,nickel,and lithium).Regrettably,the regeneration of lower-value-added anode materials(mostly graphite)has received little attention.However,given the widespread use of carbon-based materials and the higher concentration of lithium in the anode than in the environment,anode recycling has gotten a lot of attention.As a result,this article provides the most recent research progress in the recovery of graphite anode materials from spent lithium ion batteries,analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of various recovery routes such as direct physical recovery,heat treatment recovery,hydrometallurgy recovery,heat treatment-hydrometallurgy recovery,extraction,and electrochemical methods from the perspectives of energy,environment,and economy;additionally,the reuse of recycled anode mats is discussed.Finally,the problems and future possibilities of anode recycling are discussed.To enable the green recycling of wasted lithium ion batteries,a low energy-consuming and ecologically friendly solution should be investigated.

Integrating the valence theory and the norm activation theory to understand consumers’ e-waste recycling intention

Electrical and electronic waste(e-waste)is a growing challenge,matching the widespread boom in the use of information and communication technology.Opposite to an alarming increasing amount of e-waste,a low rate of consumer engagement in ensuring the proper disposal of such materials intensifies the pressure on the exist‐ing e-waste crisis.To deal with this thorny problem,it is of great interest to grasp consumers’disposal and re‐cycling behavioral intentions.Therefore,this study attempts to understand complementary perspectives around consumers’e-waste recycling intention based on the integration of the valence theory and the norm activation theory.Four data mining models using classification and prediction-based algorithms,namely Chi squared automatic interaction detector(CHAID),Neural network,Discriminant analysis,and Quick,unbiased,efficient statistical tree(QUEST),were employed to analyze a set of the 398 data collected in Vietnam.The re‐sults revealed that the social support value is by far the most critical predictor,followed by the utilitarian value,task difficulty,and monetary risk.It is also noteworthy that the awareness of consequences,education background,the ascription of responsibility,and age were also ranked as critical affecting factors.The lowest influential predictors found in this study were income and gender.In addition,a comparison was made in terms of the classification performance of the four utilized data mining techniques.Based on several evalua‐tion measurements(confusion matrix,accuracy,precision,recall,specificity,F-measure,ROC curve,and AUC),the aggregated results suggested that CHAID and Neural network performed the best.The findings of this research are expected to assist policymakers and future researchers in updating all information surround‐ing consumer behavioral intention-related topics focusing on e-waste.Furthermore,the adoption of data min‐ing algorithms for prediction is another insight of this study,which may shed the light on data mining applica‐tions in such environmental studies in the future.

A Robust Indicator for Promoting Circular Economy through Recycling

In order to move towards a more sustainable development, it is necessary not only to minimize the use of materials in the design stage and to find new materials as alternatives to nonrenewable ones (e.g. optical fiber instead of copper, biopolymers instead of polymers from oil) but also to reclaim as much as possible material value through effective recycling. To this extent, recycling can play a key role in multiple dimensions, while providing new business opportunities for innovative companies, having positive impacts on the society and the environment and fostering an effective circular economy as well. Because of the advanced waste management infrastructures available in developed countries, it is possible to achieve an almost complete collection of solid wastes into a variety of controlled bulk material flows. However, the picture for the follow-up step, the recycling of raw materials such as steel, non-ferrous metals, polymers and glass from these flows, is less positive. Materials value recovered from waste represents a very small fraction of European GDP. The fundamental issue is that policymakers still lack an effective key performance indicator for stimulating the recycling industry. Therefore although recycling plays an important role in the circular economy perspective, it is necessary to radically change the metric used so far to compute the recycling rate. Nowadays, the recycling rate is computed measuring the amount of material entering the recycling facilities. This approach has brought about an inaccurate and somehow misleading indicator (the recycling rate) which contributed to wrong decision making and to poor innovation in the industry. The new approach proposed in this paper considers the use of a Circular Economy Index (CEI) as the ratio of the material value produced by the recycler (market value) by the intrinsic material value1 entering the recycling facility. It is argued that this index is related to strategic, economic and environmental aspects of recycling and it has very important implications as decision making tool. To compute the CEI it is necessary to know detailed information of the components and materials contained in each end of life (EOL) product entering the recycling facilities and how they end up in the recycled raw materials. Therefore an accurate accounting of materials (with standards if available), mass, chemical composition and smallest dimension (e.g. a screw, a plastic foil) is proposed.

The 4R-Rules of Recycling Economy in Industry

Traditional 3R-rules have been regarded as behaviour rules for developing recycling economy. However, with the development of modern advanced manufacturing techniques, the important value of remanufacturing in promoting recycling economy has been given more and more attention to in recent years. Remanufacturing engineering technology, which utilizes advanced surface engineering and forming technology, produces directly with useable components of scraped machines. It can conserve the most of materials (about 85%-95%) and energy (about 80-85%) of original products with less pollution. By remanufacturing, we can reduce resources’ consumption under the condition of meeting the needs of social and economic development. Remanufacturing is an advanced method for recycling economy in industry. Therefore, we think that the rules of recycling economy in industry could be extended from 3R-rules to 4R-rules. The 4R-rules’ optimal sequence would be reduce, reuse, remanufacture, and recycle.

The Essence of a Recycling Economy:Circular Utilization of Resources

By analyzing the relationship between a recycling economy and sustainable development theory, this article puts forward the basic concept of a recycling economy as a dynamic economic operational model, and explains the four basic characteristics. It is stressed that the essential element of a recycling economy is the use of resources circularly. In the end, this article analyzes the phenomena of utilizing the recycling economy concept incorrectly, and sets forth a number of problems that should be noted during the process of developing a recycling economy in China.

Pyrometallurgical recycling of spent lithium-ion batteries from conventional roasting to synergistic pyrolysis with organic wastes

The synergistic pyrolysis has been increasingly used for recycling spent lithium-ion batteries(LIBs)and organic wastes(hydrogen and carbon sources),which are in-situ transformed into various reducing agents such as H_(2),CO,and char via carbothermal and/or gas thermal reduction.Compared with the conventional roasting methods,this“killing two birds with one stone”strategy can not only reduce the cost and energy consumption,but also realize the valorization of organic wastes.This paper concluded the research progress in synergistic pyrolysis recycling of spent LIBs and organic wastes.On the one hand,valued metals such as Li,Co,Ni,and Mn can be recovered through the pyrolysis of the cathode materials with inherent organic materials(e.g.,separator,electrolyte)or graphite anode.During the pyrolysis process,the organic materials are decomposed into char and gases(e.g.,CO,H_(2),and CH_(4))as reducing agents,while the cathode material is decomposed and then converted into Li_(2)CO_(3) and low-valent transition metals or their oxides via in-situ thermal reduction.The formed Li_(2)CO_(3) can be easily recovered by the water leaching process,while the formed transition metals or their oxides(e.g.,Co,CoO,Ni,MnO,etc.)can be recovered by the reductant-free acid leaching or magnetic separation process.On the other hand,organic wastes(e.g.,biomass,plastics,etc.)as abundant hydrogen and carbon sources can be converted into gas(e.g.,H_(2),CO,etc.)and char via pyrolysis.The cathode materials are decomposed and subsequently reduced by the pyrolysis gas and char.In addition,the pyrolysis oil and gas can be upgraded by catalytic reforming with the active metals derived from cathode material.Finally,great challenges are proposed to promote this promising technology in the industrial applications.