TUT8: XEV Lithium-Ion Recycling Methods

GARDEN ROOM

By 2025 the original lithium-ion battery manufacturing industry is on course to reach $98 billion worldwide. However, with so many uncertainties, the recycling market has projections of $14 to $40 billion. Recycling must be economically sustainable with future $10/kg cathodes, can it achieve such a goal? A supportive recycling industry will be expected to (1) operate with end-of-life batteries as an asset (2) produce cost-competitive elements, electrodes, or electrode precursor materials, (3) safely address large scale throughputs, and (4) accommodate low cobalt or no cobalt cathode formulations. This tutorial and panel will comprehensively address technologies of pyrometallurgy, hydrometallurgy, hybrid-approaches, and direct-recycling. The panelists will introduce these and discuss them in light of cost goals and market realities.

Instructors:

Steven E. Sloop, President, OnTo Technology, LLC

Michael Slater, PhD, Senior Scientist, Farasis Energy, Inc.

Benoit Couture, President, Lithion Recycling, Inc.

Linda Gaines, Ph.D., Energy Systems Division, Argonne National Laboratory

Hans Eric Melin, Circular Energy Storage Research and Consulting

Instructor Biographies:

Steven E. Sloop, President, OnTo Technology, LLC

Steve Sloop founded OnTo Technology LLC in 2004 to provide recycling service for the LGChem/Apple battery recall. Steve has pioneered lithium-ion recycling approaches including direct recycling, cathode-healing™, battery deactivation and whole battery rejuvenation. The company performs contract research and development for federal agencies and private industry. He was a visiting Assistant Professor of Chemistry at Willamette University (1995-97) and received his PhD in inorganic chemistry from Oregon State University in 1996.

Michael Slater, PhD, Senior Scientist, Farasis Energy, Inc.

Since 2015, Dr. Michael Slater has been with Farasis Energy. For the past two years, as the R&D Manager where he manages R&D for advanced Li-ion batteries technology for high energy cells, safer batteries, battery manufacturing and recycling process development. Prior to that Dr. Slater has been the senior scientist focusing on materials chemistry for energy storage and scientific project management. Prior to Farasis Michael was a postdoctoral researcher at Argonne National Laboratory from 2010-2014. Dr. Slater holds a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley in Organic and Analytical Chemistry and holds a BS & BA in chemistry from the University of Califronia, Santa Cruz.

Benoit Couture, President, Lithion Recycling, Inc.

Benoit Couture is the founding president of Lithion Recycling. Lithion Recycling is a spin-off of Seneca, a process engineering firm Benoit also co-founded and has been leading for over 21 years. In collaboration with Seneca’s process expert team, Lithion Recycling developed a technology for recycling lithium-ion batteries. The patent-pending technology makes it possible to recycle the most common different lithium-ion batteries chemistries by producing battery-grade materials that can be reintroduced into the production chain for new Li-ion batteries. The Lithion process makes it possible to recover 95% of the battery components. The results and performance of the Lithion process give it the status of a disruptive innovation. Benoit holds a mechanical engineering degree from the École Polytechnique (Université de Montréal). Throughout his career spanning more than 30 years, he has headed many process development projects applied to extractive metallurgy and energy. Responsible for the strategic direction of his companies, Benoit positions his teams so that they work primarily on sustainable development projects that have a real impact on society, today and tomorrow.

Hans Eric Melin, Circular Energy Storage Research and Consulting

Hans Eric Melin is the founder of Circular Energy Storage Research and Consulting, a London-based consultancy specialized in life cycle management of lithium-ion batteries. Mr. Melin helps battery companies, car and device makers, utilities and recyclers to develop end-of-life strategies for lithium-ion batteries and advise investors and the raw material industry on how the the end-of-life sector affects the overall energy storage market.

Linda Gaines, Ph.D., Energy Systems Division, Argonne National Laboratory

Linda Gaines is an Environmental Scientist/Systems Analyst in Argonne National Laboratory’s Energy Systems division, where she examines energy use and the flow of materials and processes in the energy production cycle. More recently, her research has focused on analyzing process options for recycling of lithium-ion batteries. Dr. Gaines received a B.A. in Chemistry and Physics from Radcliffe College; M.A. and M.Phil. in Physics from Columbia University; and Ph.D. in Physics from Columbia University.