Lithium recovery via charging of lithium-ion batteries

Abstract

An efficient and green method for selective extraction of Li from end-of-life secondary LIBs of any capacity and size is provided. Electrochemical driven selective lithium deposition is targeted at the anode/separator interface of the end-of-life LIB. The deposited Li is recovered by processing of an opened or dismantled battery using only distilled or de-ionized water. The process not only enables the recovery of the plated lithium at the anode/separator interface, but also extracts the lithium from the organic salts and/or inorganic salts in the solid electrolyte interface (SEI) layers and from the electrolyte in the separator. In addition, the method partially strips the cyclable Li from the cathode and concentrates it at the anode/separator interface. The concentrated Li is extracted by using aqueous solution such as distilled or de-ionized water followed by recovery of the Li from aqueous solution. After Li recovery from the anode, the method can also enable the recovery of battery-grade graphite.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.