Microwave assisted recycling of spent Li-ion battery electrode material into efficient oxygen evolution reaction catalyst

Owing to the high utilization of Li-ion battery (LIB) in the industrial sector and subsequent production of waste from cycled LIB endows with the shortage of rare metals and environmental pollution. Herein, we demonstrate an efficient strategy for the conversion of spent LIB for the recovery of valuable metals through a facile microwave-assisted hydrometallurgy technique for the large-scale production of catalysts towards oxygen evo-lution reaction (OER). After performing a series of recycling procedures with the variation in H2SO4 concen-tration, H2O2 dosage, and microwave parameters, the optimum condition for the leaching are 60 oC, 30 min, 0.5 M H2SO4, 50 W microwave power, 3 vol% H2O2 to achieve Li: 89.07%, Co: 94.57%, Ni: 94.25% and Mn: 100%. The leaching kinetics is further modeled through a diffusion control mechanism. Further coprecipitation reaction leads to the formation of mixed metal hydroxide containing a majority of alpha-Co(OH)2 phase with traces of Ni and Mn. The optimized and recovered alpha-Co(OH)2 exhibits pronounced OER activity with an overpotential of 131 mV to achieve 10 mA/cm2 current density and Tafel slope of 80.2 mV/dec surpassing all the synthesized mixed metal, commercial Co(OH)2 and benchmark electrocatalyst (IrO2). Further, the recovered Co(OH)2 exhibits pronounced long-term stability with negligible loss (5%) after 50 h of continuous OER. The recycling strategy using the microwave technique provides a pathway for low-cost recycling of waste material for the large-scale production of efficient electrocatalyst towards a sustainable future.

Automated summary

We present an efficient strategy for the recovery of valuable metals from spent Li-ion batteries (LIBs) through a microwave-assisted hydrometallurgy technique, which can be used for the large-scale production of catalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). By optimizing the leaching conditions, including temperature, time, acid concentration, microwave power, and hydrogen peroxide dosage, we were able to achieve high recovery rates of Li, Co, Ni, and Mn. The recovered Co(OH)2 exhibited excellent OER activity and long-term stability, surpassing other synthesized and commercial catalysts.