Organic Eutectic Salts‐Assisted Direct Lithium Regeneration for Extremely Low State of Health Ni‐Rich Cathodes

Abstract

Currently, the concept of direct regeneration has garnered considerable attention from the public due to its minimal environmental impact, high economic value, and stable performance of recycled materials. In this study, an organic lithium salt‐assisted eutectic salts direct regeneration (OAER) is proposed for replenishing lithium in an extremely low state of health Ni‐rich cathode (Low SOH NCM). The OAER method capitalizes on the favorable inherent properties of eutectic salts; moreover, the reactions of organic lithium salt create an oxidation environment and vacancies. By employing OAER, Low SOH NCM are able to be recovered, which originally has a capacity of only 46.8 mAh g−1, to 155.5 mAh g−1 with a capacity retention of 95.6% after 100 cycles. Notably, this performance is substantially higher than that achieved through conventional and purely eutectic salt regeneration methods and even slightly surpasses the current commercial NCM material. Considering the economic and environmental benefits of the OAER approach, it demonstrates potential for direct regeneration of Low SOH NCM and exhibits competitiveness for industrial applications.

Degradation Mechanisms of Electrodes Promotes Direct Regeneration of Spent Li‐Ion Batteries: A Review

“…Liu and associates found that the XPS analysis of the Co 2p3/2 and Mn 2p core levels in the cathode showed distinctive characteristics, both before regeneration (at a low SOH, denoted as L‐NCM523) and after direct regeneration (at a high SOH, denoted as H‐NCM523), exhibit nearly indistinguishable characteristic peaks corresponding to Co 3+ and Mn 4+ ions at binding energies of 780.2, 642.3, and 653.9 eV (Figure 5k,l). [ 91 ] The variation of Mn valence before and after the regeneration of cathode materials is inconsistent with the above literature reports, which may be related to the degree of failure of the material. Direct regeneration led to a significant increase in Ni (III) content in NCM523 (Figure 5m), affirming the transition of the impurity phase into a fully layered configuration.…”

Status and Prospects of Research on Lithium-Ion Battery Parameter Identification

“…For example, among the selection of cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries, Ni-rich cathodes materials (NCM) are becoming increasingly dominant in the field of lithium-ion batteries, while future research will continue to be directed towards high-nickel batteries that can significantly increase energy density [123]. In addition, lithium-sulfur is becoming a popular battery system due to its high capacity and excellent cycle efficiency [124]. Besides, comprehensively considering the voltage, capacity, and temperature sensitivity of the battery will further enable higher performance, cost efficiency, and sustainability.…”

Environmentally Friendly Recovery of Li2CO3 from Spent Lithium-Ion Batteries by Oxidation and Selective Leaching Process

“…The O 1s spectra for SNCM622 are deconvoluted into two distinct peaks at 531.9 and 529.5 eV, attributed to oxygen impurities and the oxygen lattice, respectively. 52 However, the peaks at 531.7, 530.6, and 529.9 eV are derived from the O impurities and the O lattice in the leaching residues, respectively. The proportion of the oxygen lattice in the residues escalates from 9.4 to 25.4% as the leaching duration extends, which is perhaps due to the formation of transitionmetal oxides within the residue after leaching by Na 2 S 2 O 8 .…”