Recovery of Lithium, Nickel, and Cobalt from Spent Lithium-Ion Battery Powders by Selective Ammonia Leaching and an Adsorption Separation System

A novel hydrometallurgical route was developed to recover valuable metals from spent lithium-ion battery (LIB) powders. An ammonia media was utilized to selectively leach lithium, nickel, and cobalt from the pretreated spent LIB powders. Subsequently, an adsorption method was adopted to effectively separate lithium from Co2+–Ni2+–Li+–NH4+-containing leaching solutions using manganese type lithium ion-sieves as adsorbents. The results showed that the direct recovery efficiencies of lithium, nickel, and cobalt from the spent LIB powders reached 76.19%, 96.23%, and 94.57%, respectively. Also, ammonia could be closed-loop recycled, while Li2CO3, NiSO4, and CoSO4 could be obtained as products. This study provides a new pathway for recycling utilization of spent LIB powders.