Environmentally friendly disposal methods for waste batteries
Classification: Recycled waste batteries are smashed, the zinc casing and bottom iron are removed, and the copper cap and graphite rod are extracted. The remaining black substance is a mixture of manganese dioxide and ammonium chloride, which are used as battery cells. These substances are collected and processed to obtain some useful materials. The graphite rods are washed, dried, and then used as electrodes.
Zinc granule production: After washing the removed zinc shell, place it in a cast iron pot, heat and melt it, and keep it at a temperature for 2 hours. Remove the top layer of scum, pour it out to cool, and drip it onto an iron plate. After solidification, zinc granules are obtained.
Copper sheet recycling: After flattening the copper cap, wash it with hot water, then add a certain amount of 10% sulfuric acid and boil for 30 minutes to remove the surface oxide layer. Take it out, wash it, and dry it to obtain the copper sheet.
After the scrapped batteries are recycled, they are disassembled, their remaining lifespan is tested, sorted, and integrated into systems. Batteries that are not suitable for recycling are crushed to recover valuable elements. Recyclable batteries are integrated according to different needs and applied to energy storage devices in a tiered utilization manner, such as commercial and residential energy storage stations, electric vehicle charging energy storage stations, and telecommunications base stations.
The recycling and utilization of spent lithium-ion batteries generally falls into two categories: secondary use and dismantling. Secondary use primarily targets batteries with reduced capacity, which can no longer power vehicles but still retain residual heat that can be used for other purposes. Dismantling, on the other hand, involves the resource-based processing of lithium-ion batteries, recovering valuable recyclable resources such as cobalt and lithium. Extracting precious metals like cobalt, lithium, and nickel and converting them into battery materials effectively conserves resources.
Common methods for recycling and utilizing waste lithium-ion batteries include hydrometallurgy, pyrometallurgy, and mechanical-physical methods. Compared to hydrometallurgy and pyrometallurgy, mechanical-physical methods are simpler, less labor-intensive, do not require chemical reagents, and consume less energy, making them a beneficial method for environmental protection. Under normal circumstances, when the capacity of a power lithium battery decays to below 80%, it will not be able to fully meet power demands. However, if the technology is properly processed and the business model is feasible, waste power lithium batteries can be dismantled and reassembled into modules for reuse in other fields.
After undergoing multiple industrial processes including discharge, crushing, sorting, anaerobic pyrolysis, sieving, leaching, impurity removal, and evaporation, a spent lithium-ion battery is transformed into NCM mixed sulfate and crude lithium carbonate, core raw materials for producing new energy lithium-ion batteries. This completes the final link in the ecological closed loop of spent lithium-ion battery processing, achieving comprehensive utilization of spent lithium-ion batteries, truly realizing resource recycling and creating commercial value.
Lithium-ion batteries contain positive and negative electrodes. Copper in the negative electrode is an important and widely used production material, and the carbon powder adhering to it can be used as an additive in plastics, rubber, and other products. Therefore, effectively separating the components of the negative electrode of waste lithium-ion batteries and maximizing the resource utilization of waste lithium-ion batteries can promote the solution of their corresponding environmental impacts.
