ReAktiv

The ReAktiv project aims to significantly increase the efficiency of recycling processes for round and button cells as well as the recyclability of the recovered active materials. Along the battery recycling process chain, a total of three process steps are to be explicitly further developed and implemented in demonstrators up to TRL 7 as part of the project. Firstly, a process for dismantling round cells is to be developed with the help of which battery cells can be opened automatically and broken down into their cell components in a defined manner. In contrast to the mechanical shredding processes used today (e.g. shredding), this is intended to avoid premature mixing of the material fractions. The end product of the dismantling process to be developed is electrode foils that have been dismantled and largely freed of organic components (electrolyte and binder), separated into anode and cathode.

The second new development in the project involves the mechanical separation of the anode and cathode materials from the corresponding electrode foils and their downstream mechanical processing. For the development of this direct recycling process, various mechanical separation processes are to be investigated and evaluated in terms of their efficiency and scalability. The anode and cathode materials recovered in this way are to be processed downstream with the best possible preservation of structure and with the greatest possible restoration of electrochemical properties for reuse in the production of Li-ion cells via admixture in anode and cathode slurries.

The third new development involves the further development of existing hydrometallurgical processes with the aim of increasing the recycling efficiency in the recovery of lithium to over 90 %. This increase in efficiency is to be achieved by selective lithium leaching and increasing the activity of the black mass at the start of the process, which also significantly reduces the acid requirement for the subsequent leaching steps for other valuable metals.

The further development of the three process steps is always accompanied and evaluated by the corresponding material and economic life cycle studies. The project partners Varta and Promesa provide the other partners with the samples of round cells and material from the production scrap and the end-of-life round and button cells required for the project work. Proof of the usability of the recovered active materials in new battery cells is to be provided by setting up corresponding test and full cells in 21700 format on a laboratory scale. The knowledge gained from this will be continuously fed back into the development of the various processes.

The results of the project will demonstrate for the first time the technical and economic feasibility of round cell disassembly and the recyclability of the active material fractions recovered in this way. The results offer potential applications in the recycling of end-of-line production waste from cell manufacturers and end-of-life round and button cells from recyclers.