Efficient Extraction of Lithium from Anode for Direct Regeneration of Cathode Materials of Spent Li-Ion Batteries

The recycling of lithium-ion batteries is important due to limited metallic resources and environmental protection. However, most current studies aim at only extracting valuable components from cathode materials, and the lithium in the anode is usually ignored due to its low concentration. Herein, we develop an integrated recycling strategy for both cathode and anode materials. Batteries are disassembled, and lithium in lithiated graphite is extracted in water and converted to Li2CO3 after absorbing CO2 from the air, which is then used for the direct regeneration of LiCoO2 and LiNi0.5Mn0.3Co0.2O2, while the degraded graphite is regenerated by the delithiation and activation. LiCoO2 with different degrees of failure can retrieve a capacity of 130 mAh/g, while degraded graphite can realize a capacity of 370 mAh/g after regeneration, values which are comparable to commercial materials. Importantly, no external lithium salt is necessary, and water is the only reagent used during regeneration of the cathode material.

Automated summary

This study develops an integrated recycling strategy for both the cathode and anode materials of lithium-ion batteries, extracting valuable components and regenerating them using water as the sole reagent.