Closing in on Circular Success

Working with the ReCell Center*, XALT Energy is providing material resources and proof-of-concept testing to validate a simple separation process that allows for direct recycling of manufacturing scrap electrode materials into new battery electrodes. If successful, the process could create a significant cost benefit for battery manufacturers by reducing the amount of virgin raw material used in production. In addition, with supply chains for critical materials such as nickel-manganese-cobalt oxide (NMC) still being established, advanced recycling could significantly reduce the volume of materials being globally shipped, reducing transportation emissions and energy costs.

XALT Energy experts at the company’s Auburn Hills Technology Park have been testing recycled NMC electrodes produced by the ReCell Center’s process and “the results look promising,” says John Camardese, Director of Cell Development at XALT Energy. “This technology would enable us to directly recycle our coated scrap to recover expensive NMC for use in slurry. This will be a real game changer."

The Right Time

Fortunately for the lithium-ion battery industry, the ReCell Center’s game changing technology is emerging at the right time. Efforts to promote carbon-neutral energy strategies that lower CO₂ emissions are being globally pursued. In response, key industries, including transportation, are investing heavily in alternate powertrain technologies. Global demand for lithium-ion batteries is expected to rise from 230 GWh in 2020 to 1,700 GWh in 2030, according to industry analysts at IHS Markit, with new battery electric vehicles driving much of this demand. At this growth rate, IHS Markit analysts note, recycling will need to dramatically increase to keep up with such material demands.

ReCell Center scientists based at the DOE’s Argonne and Oak Ridge National Laboratories in Illinois and Tennessee agree. In an effort to get in front of this challenge, they proposed a fundamental research program to develop a recycling process that, unlike existing hydro- and pyro-metallurgical methods, would separate and rejuvenate cycle-damaged, nickel-manganese-cobalt foil coatings for reuse in new batteries. Without a robust source for end-of-life batteries to conduct their research, they contacted XALT about collaborating on the project. “Right now, there still aren’t a lot of end-of-life electric vehicle batteries available because they last such a long time,” said Jeff Spangenberger, director of the ReCell Center. “We needed a feedstock of battery materials in order to pursue this early-stage technology. The coated foil scrap and spent pouch cells that XALT has provided to us has enabled us to conduct this recycling program.”

The Benefits of Simple Separation