Boosting Efficient and Low-Energy Solid Phase Regeneration for Single Crystal Lini0.6co0.2mn0.2o2 Via Highly Selective Leaching and its Industrial Application

Abstract

Extensive application of energy storage and power devices has brought about a large number of spent batteries, however the traditional solid-phase regeneration and hydrometallurgical leaching methods for treating or disposing them encounter high energy consumption, long process route, and large amount of waste liquids, which therefore demand technical innovations urgently. To solve these problems, an efficient and low-energy strategy for regenerating high nickel LiNi 0.6 Co 0.2 Mn 0.2 O 2 materials based on selective leaching was proposed, not necessarily for ensuring the optimal leaching rate. The broken crystal structure and impurity phases of spent LiNi 0.6 Co 0.2 Mn 0.2 O 2 can be repaired through leaching and the solid-liquid mixture does not need complex treatments, with the compelling features of low-energy consumption and green environmental protection. The re-synthesized single crystal LiNi 0.6 Co 0.2 Mn 0.2 O 2 delivers an initial specific discharge capacity of 179.2 mAh·g -1 and maintains the capacity retention of 90.7% at 0.2C after 150 cycles, which is comparable to commercial materials. This method can accurately supplement the lithium missing in spent materials and repair the damaged crystal structure, thus improving the transporting rate of lithium ions and making the spent battery recycling for better industrial application.

Keywords: Lithium ion batteries (LIBs), High nickel materials, Recycling of spent batteries, Low-energy recovery, Selective leaching