A novel and clean process for selective recovery of lithium from spent LiFePO₄ cathode material by oxidative roasting-water leaching process

Abstract

The recovery of lithium from spent lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) is of great importance in addressing lithium shortages and environmental issues. In this study, a novel and clean process for selective separation of lithium from spent LiFePO₄ cathode material by low temperature oxidative roasting and water leaching was proposed. The effect of several important factors, such as roasting temperature, roasting time, and molar ratio of ferric chloride (FeCl₃ • 6H₂O) to lithium iron phosphate (LFP), on the leaching efficiency of lithium and iron was systematically investigated by using single factor experimental method. The results show that approximately 97.1% lithium element was recovered by being converted to water-soluble LiCl at a roasting temperature 350 °C, a roasting time 120 min and a FeCl₃ • 6H₂O/LFP molar ratio of 1:1, and iron element was enriched in the leaching residue in the form of insoluble FePO₄ High-purity lithium carbonate products could be prepared from the leching solution by adding Na₂CO₃ after removing iron. The establishment of new cleaning process can provide a scalable, environmentally friendly and simple way to recover valuable metals from spent LFP batteries.

Keywords

spent LiFePO₄ battery / selective recovery / oxidative roasting / Li₂CO₃

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