Lithium recovery from effluent of spent lithium battery recycling process using solvent extraction

A novel process of lithium recovery from effluent of spent lithium batteries recycling by solvent extraction was proposed. The β-diketone extraction system used in the experiment was composed of benzoyltrifluoroacetone (HBTA), trioctylphosphine oxide (TOPO) and kerosene. The effective parameters such as solution pH value, saponification degree, initial lithium concentration and phase ratio were evaluated by experiments. More than 90% of lithium could be extracted by saponified organic phase through three-stage countercurrent extraction. The loaded organic phase was first eluted by dilute HCl solution to remove nontarget sodium, and then stripped by 6 mol/L HCl at a large phase ratio to obtain lithium-rich solution with 4.322 mol/L lithium. The lithium-rich solution from the process could be used to prepare lithium carbonate or lithium chloride. The stripped organic phase can be recycled and no crud or emulsification was observed during the process. The extraction mechanism of HBTA-TOPO was investigated via FT-IR spectroscopy, and the results indicated the two extractants showed strong synergistic effect. The thermodynamic study revealed lithium extraction is an exothermic process, which meant lower temperature promotes extraction of lithium. This work provided a novel approach to recover lithium from effluent of spent lithium battery recycling.