Recovery of lithium, cobalt and other metals from lithium-ion batteries

Wastes with high metal content are an important secondary source. Utilisation of these wastes is important offering environmental and economic advantages as well as the conservation of natural resources. Due to the widespread use of portable electrical and electronic devices (mobile phones, laptops, video cameras, etc.) and electric cars, the consumption of lithium and cobalt, which are used as main components in lithium-ion batteries/batteries (LIB), has increased. Because LIBs contain lithium (1.5-7%), cobalt (5-20%), manganese (15-20%), copper (8-10%), aluminium (5-8%), and nickel (5-10%), they are considered as an important secondary source. Industrially, mechanical pretreatment, pyrometallurgical and hydrometallurgical methods as alone or in combination are used to recover metals from waste LIBs. After mechanical pretreatment and physical separation processes, hydrometallurgical methods, including solution purification, precipitation and solvent extraction methods, are used after leaching with inorganic such as H2SO4, HCI and HNO3 or organic acids. In this study, processes for recovery of metals from LIBs are discussed with a critical review of studies carried out on this. In addition, flowsheets of industrial applications for lithium/cobalt recovery in the world are presented.