Battery materials & recycling
The future needs metals
Metals are present in many everyday products and technologies, including energy infrastructure, transport, electronics and digital systems.
Growing demand for metals increases the importance of using both primary and secondary raw materials efficiently. Metal recycling recovers materials from end-of-life products and industrial residues for further processing and use in material supply chains.
Recovering metals for further use
Multi-metal and battery-recycling plants process end-of-life material streams and can recover selected mineral raw materials. Recovery outcomes depend on the composition of the input material, the process route and the required output specifications.
Many non-ferrous and precious metals can be recovered and reprocessed. For certain metals and applications, appropriately processed secondary materials can meet relevant quality specifications.
A challenge in metal recycling is the increasing complexity of end-of-life products. Depending on the input material, preparation may involve mechanical processing followed by pyrometallurgical and, where appropriate, hydrometallurgical treatment.
E-scrap as a source of recoverable metals
Recycling of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) typically begins with sampling and material preparation. Depending on the consistency and composition of the material, inputs may be crushed, treated in a preparation plant or conditioned into process-specific input mixtures. Pyrometallurgical steps can include smelting and converting.
In a copper-recycling route, pyrometallurgical processing can produce copper anodes. These, together with precious-metal-bearing recycling materials, may be used as inputs for subsequent refining stages in which copper cathodes are produced.
Recovering materials from lithium-ion batteries
When lithium-ion batteries no longer meet the requirements of their original application, they may enter reuse, repurposing or recycling pathways, depending on their condition. Materials such as lithium, cobalt, manganese and nickel may be recovered for subsequent manufacturing, subject to the process route and applicable specifications.
Depending on the battery type and process route, batteries may be discharged and dismantled before mechanical processing. This can separate material fractions such as plastics, aluminium, copper and black mass. Alternatively, thermal processes such as pyrolysis and smelting may be used. Black mass containing target metals can subsequently undergo hydrometallurgical processing, while other material fractions may be treated through separate recycling routes.
Off-gas treatment in recycling plants
Recycling processes can generate off-gas and exhaust air that may require treatment in accordance with the applicable process requirements and permit conditions. Depending on the process configuration, feed material and contaminants present, electrostatic precipitators, gas scrubbers and additional gas-cleaning equipment may be used to control specified emissions, including particulate matter and sulphur-, halogen- and nitrogen-oxide compounds.
Principle flow diagram of a typical gas cleaning plant customized for recycling furnaces’ off-gases.
Why GEA
- Decades of experience in non-ferrous applications with acid process gases.
- Portfolio covering a huge range of required proven gas cleaning technologies.
- Profound know-how in tailored gas cleaning solutions.
- Solid SCR and WHR know-how & inhouse technologies advancement.
- Proven track record of successful projects and market recognition on halide removal and DeSOx scrubber technologies.
How GEA contributes to battery recycling plants
Hydrometallurgy is the most common method to extract and separate metals contained in li-ion batteries’ black mass. The process consists of an initial leaching of black mass in an acid to allow minerals to be solubilized and separated from the carbon.
Afterwards, the metals in solution are either precipitated by pH variation or extracted from each other using organic solvents. Once metals have been extracted into a solution, they are selectively crystallized as battery grade salts.
Why GEA
- Over a century of evaporation, crystallization and drying expertise.
- Deep know-how of the hydrometallurgical process.
- We design and fabricate centrifugal separators, evaporators and crystallizers suitable for all process steps of the recycle process.
- Our Equipment is shop- or field- fabricated to ASME, ANSI, AS, PED and ASTM specifications.
- GEA installations are always closely supervised by our experts.
GEA supports Circ® in enabling more resource-efficient practices in fashion.
GEA and POSCO: a synergy of engineering solutions towards clean energy sources.
GEA & Atlantic Copper: teamwork towards WEEE.
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