Understanding Leaching in Battery Electrodes
Mie Engelbrecht Jensen
DTU Energy
Large quantities of battery waste from electric vehicles will soon build up. Improved recycling technologies are needed. Hydrometallurgical recycling is a more sustainable alternative to pyrometallurgical recycling due to the lower energy consumption. The climate impact of hydrometallurgical recycling depends on chemical consumption as the technology is based on leaching. The initial steps of the transition metal (TM) dissolution at the electrode leachate interface are not understood. Theoretically, a reductant is required for metal dissolution to occur. Experimentally, it is known that up to 40% of the TMs in NMC can be recovered in acid without a reductant. Computational methods can be used to model electrode leachate interfaces and determine the initial dissolution steps. Here we apply density functional theory calculations to study leaching processes. Our findings will provide fundamental understanding of battery leaching processes and guide the development of new processes.