We achieve the high recycling rate of 80% with a low-CO2 hydrometallurgical recycling process. The lithium-ion batteries are first made safe for mechanical treatment, with plastics, aluminium and copper separated and directed to their own recycling processes.
The chemical and mineral components of the battery form a ‘black mass’ that typically consists of a mixture of lithium, manganese, cobalt and nickel in different ratios. Of these, nickel – and especially cobalt – are the most valuable and most difficult to recover.
We use a unique recovery process involving a chemical precipitation methodology that allows these minerals to be recovered and delivered to battery manufacturers for reuse in the production of new batteries. This technology was developed by the Finnish growth company Crisolteq.
Most of today’s recycling solutions for EV batteries are not able to recover valuable minerals. Crisolteq has a hydrometallurgical recycling facility in Harjavalta, Finland, where the ‘black mass’ can be treated on an industrial scale.