study<\/a> by a Montclair State University researcher published in the Royal Society of Chemistry peer-reviewed journal RSC Advances offers a new, more sustainable approach to recycle and recover important components from end-of-life (EoL) lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) that power our cell phones, laptops and electric cars.<\/p>\nLed by Chemistry and Biochemistry Assistant Professor Amrita Sarkar, the research, titled \u201cA Sustainable Approach to Cathode Delamination Using a Green Solvent,\u201d shows that global efforts to increase the use of green, affordable energy sources has resulted in the ubiquity of rechargeable LIBs. Unfortunately, the extensive use also causes an enormous accumulation of battery waste at the end-of-life stage, introducing a serious waste-management challenge that undercuts meaningful sustainability goals.<\/p>\n
Researchers and industries are currently looking for sustainable and environmentally friendly techniques of recycling and reusing of spent battery components, Sarkar explains \u2013 and this discovery by her team is an important step in that direction.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis finding is expected to provide a replacement for a toxic organic solvent and offers an effective, eco-friendly and sustainable recycling approach for spent LIBs,\u201d Sarkar says, adding that the method leading to this discovery was tested at lab scale and a pilot-scale test would be necessary to determine its economic viability.<\/p>\n
A safer way to recycle<\/h3>\n
Proper recycling methods are necessary to maintain the sustainability and economic benefits of LIBs and mitigate safety hazards, but so far existing recycling processes typically focus on a combination of physical and chemical approaches that require high temperatures and toxic chemicals.<\/p>\n
LIB cathodes \u2013 the electrodes that play a central role in moving electrical currents within the battery \u2013 also contain active materials such as cobalt and nickel that are wasted in traditional recycling practices, making the need for more effective, sustainable methods increasingly more pressing.<\/p>\n
Composed of Sarkar and undergraduate students Onurcan Buken and Kayla Mancini, the research team had a hunch that, by using a commercially available sugar-based solvent called Dimethyl Isosorbide, they could replace the solvent currently used (N-methyl pyrrolidone, which poses unreasonable risks in most of its uses in America) and not only extract more of the elements being wasted, but do it in a greener way.<\/p>\n
The results were a significant find \u2013 81% of available active materials like cobalt and nickel and 79% of a critical organic binder, polyvinylidene fluoride, were recovered using the more eco-friendly solvent, far surpassing the amounts recovered using traditional methods.<\/p>\n
The results could mean the solving of one of the industry\u2019s most pressing problems, making it all the more important experience for Montclair\u2019s student researchers.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am excited to see that my undergraduate research students achieved an impressive feat in obtaining publishable results,\u201d Sarkar says. \u201cThey have developed critical thinking, work ethics, communication skills with the outside world and pursuit of excellence for research on par with their graduate peers.\u201d<\/p>\n
To learn more about the Chemistry and Biochemistry program at Montclair State University, visit the department’s page.\u00a0\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n