Direct regeneration of LiNi0.5Co0.2Mn0.3O2 cathode material from spent lithium-ion batteries

At present, metal ions from spent lithium-ion batteries are mostly recovered by the acid leaching procedure, which unavoidably introduces potential pollutants to the environment. Therefore, it is necessary to develop more direct and effective green recycling methods. In this research, a method for the direct regeneration of anode materials is reported, which includes the particles size reduction of recovered raw materials by jet milling and ball milling, followed by calcination at high temperature after lithium supplementation. The regenerated LiNi0.5Co0.2Mn0.3O2 single-crystal cathode material possessed a relatively ideal layered structure and a complete surface morphology when the lithium content was n(Ni + Co + Mn):n(Li) = 1:1.10 at a sintering temperature of 920 °C, and a sintering time of 12 h. The first discharge specific capacity was 154.87 mA·h·g−1 between 2.75 V and 4.2 V, with a capacity retention rate of 90% after 100 cycles.