Solvent-Based Electrode Recovery Toward Sustainable Direct Recycling of Lithium-Ion Batteries

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are dominating in the fields of consumer electronics and electric vehicles. Given the high demand and fast-growing market of LIBs, manufacturing of LIBs is ramping up dramatically, so are the electrode scraps and end-of-life batteries. One promising recycling approach is to directly recover electrode materials like NMC and graphite with useful morphology and comparable electrochemical performance, which will substantially reduce the battery costs, mitigate both energy and environmental impacts, as well as secure the battery supply chain. However, electrode materials are tightly adhered to metal current collectors, making it challenging for separation and recovery. To this end, a green solvent-based recovery process, which enables low-temperature and highly efficient separation of electrode materials from their current collectors without damaging active electrode materials nor corroding metal foils, will be presented. In addition, we will demonstrate the direct recycling and reprocessing of electrode scraps for new battery manufacturing. It is believed that the solvent-based electrode recovery process developed here paves the way for the direct recycling of LIBs.