Innovative strategies for metal recovery from LFP-NMC Lithium-ion battery blends

Central to the energy shift and electric transport, lithium-ion batteries form the cornerstone [1][2][3].The imminent future anticipates a surge in global gigafactories and recycling facilities dedicated to manufacturing and repurposing batteries, predominantly for electric vehicles.However, as the focus remains on electric vehicle batteries, the burgeoning market for smaller counterparts in electric bicycles propels the need for an evolving recycling industry.Distinguishing these batteries lies in their compositions.Electric vehicle batteries typically adhere to established NMC (LiNixMnyCozO2) or LFP (LiFePO4) technologies.Conversely, electric bicycle and scooter batteries present a blend of NMC and LFP technologies, demanding adaptable processes to extract metals effectively from varying feed compositions.The challenge lies in designing flexible chemical processes distinct from those tailored for electric vehicle batteries.Addressing this, the discussion spotlights the imperative to develop a versatile methodology capable of extracting metals despite shifting compositions.Additionally, the hydrometallurgical processes must efficiently recover cobalt, nickel, manganese, and lithium, even amid fluctuating and substantial iron concentrations, traditionally a hurdle in hydrometallurgy.Hydrometallurgical processes treat black mass, which is a concentrate containing the valuable metals.The production of black mass from spent lithium-ion batteries involves several key steps [4,5].Initially, used batteries are collected and fully discharged to prevent any risk of short circuits or fires during subsequent processing.Following this, the discharged batteries undergo mechanical shredding into smaller fragments, breaking down the battery components, including the casing, electrodes, and separators.The resulting mixture then undergoes various separation techniques to isolate valuable materials.Physical separation methods, such as sieving, magnetic separation, and air classification, are employed to segregate materials based on their physical properties like size, magnetism, and density.Additionally, froth flotation exploits differences in surface