A review on sustainable recycling technologies for lithium-ion batteries

Due to increasing environmental awareness, tightening regulations and the need to meet the climate obligations under the Paris Agreement, the production and use of electric vehicles has grown greatly. This growth has two significant impacts on the environment, with the increased depletion of natural resources used for the production of the lithium-ion batteries for these electric vehicles and disposal of end-of-life lithium-ion batteries. In particular, when end-of-life lithium-ion batteries are incorrectly landfilled, pollution to groundwater and soil occurs. Therefore, sustainable recycling technologies must be implemented to construct a cyclic economy for the lithium-ion battery market and help alleviate the severity of these environmental consequences. The majority of current recycling methods involve energy-intensive pyrometallurgy, whereas hydrometallurgy techniques pose a viable alternative with promising advances at lab scale that can adapt with the evolution of new mixed cathode chemistries. As reviewed in this work, a combination of pre-treatment and hydrometallurgical processes was identified as a potential mechanism that could meet this criterion, which focuses on the recovered economic value and cumulative environmental benefits. Furthermore, automation of the pre-treatment process and mechanisms for electrolyte recovery were identified as potential opportunities for future works. Here, we evaluate the opportunities for sustainable recycling technologies for lithium-ion batteries.

Automated summary

The production and use of electric vehicles has greatly increased due to growing environmental awareness, but this growth also brings challenges such as resource depletion and disposal of lithium-ion batteries. Sustainable recycling technologies are crucial to alleviate environmental consequences.