Method for recovering lithium precursor

Abstract

A method for recovering a lithium precursor according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises preparing a positive electrode active material mixture containing a lithium composite oxide, reacting the positive electrode active material mixture with a carbon-based solid material in an inert gas atmosphere, thereby forming a primary precursor mixture containing lithium oxide, and recovering the lithium precursor from the primary precursor mixture. The primary precursor mixture is washed with water to separate the lithium precursor. The present invention can recover a lithium precursor in high yield and high efficiency.

Description

[0001] Cross - reference to related applications

[0002] This application is a divisional application of a Chinese patent application with an application date of September 18, 2020, a Chinese patent application number of 202080069866.1, and an invention title of "Method for Recycling Lithium Precursors", and this application claims the priority of a Korean application with an application number of 10 - 2019 - 0121933. Technical field

[0003] The present invention relates to a method for recycling lithium precursors. More specifically, it relates to a method for recycling lithium precursors from a positive electrode active material mixture. Background art

[0004] A secondary battery is a battery that can be repeatedly charged and discharged. With the development of the information communication and display industries, secondary batteries are widely used in portable electronic communication devices, such as portable cameras, mobile phones, laptop computers, etc. As secondary batteries, for example, lithium secondary batteries, nickel - cadmium batteries, and nickel - metal hydride batteries can be cited. Among them, lithium secondary batteries are being actively developed and applied because they have a high working voltage and energy density per unit weight, and are beneficial for charging speed and light weight.

[0005] A lithium secondary battery may include an electrode assembly and an electrolyte for impregnating the electrode assembly, wherein the electrode assembly includes a positive electrode, a negative electrode, and a separator (diaphragm). The lithium secondary battery may also include, for example, a pouch - type exterior material for accommodating the electrode assembly and the electrolyte.

[0006] As the positive electrode active material of the lithium secondary battery, a lithium composite oxide can be used. The lithium composite oxide may also contain transition metals, such as nickel, cobalt, and manganese, etc.

[0007] The lithium composite oxide as the positive electrode active material can be prepared by reacting a lithium precursor with a nickel - cobalt - manganese (NCM) precursor containing nickel, cobalt, and manganese.

[0008] Since the above - mentioned high - cost valuable metals are used in the positive electrode active material, the preparation cost of the positive electrode material is more than 20%. In addition, in recent years, with the emergence of environmental protection issues, methods for recycling positive electrode active materials have been studied. In order to recycle the positive electrode active material, it is necessary to regenerate the lithium precursor from waste positive electrodes with high efficiency and high purity.

[0009] For example, Korean Patent Publication No. 2015 - 0002963 discloses a method for recycling lithium using a wet method. However, this method recovers lithium by wet extraction from the remaining waste liquid after extracting cobalt, nickel, etc., so the recovery rate is excessively reduced, and a large amount of impurities are generated from the waste liquid. Summary of the Invention

[0010] Technical Problem to be Solved

[0011] One technical problem of the present invention is to provide a method for recovering a lithium precursor from a positive electrode active material mixture with high purity, high yield and high efficiency.

[0012] Technical Solution

[0013] The method for recovering a lithium precursor according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes the following steps: preparing a positive electrode active material mixture containing a lithium composite oxide; reacting the positive electrode active material mixture with a carbon-based solid material in an inert gas atmosphere to form a primary precursor mixture containing lithium oxide; and subjecting the primary precursor mixture to a water washing treatment to separate the lithium precursor.

[0014] In an exemplary embodiment, the step of forming the primary precursor mixture can be carried out at a temperature of 740 °C or higher.

[0015] In an exemplary embodiment, the step of forming the primary precursor mixture can be carried out at 840 - 1200 °C.

[0016] In an exemplary embodiment, in the step of forming the primary precursor mixture, lithium carbonate of 1 / 10 or less can be generated relative to the weight of lithium oxide.

[0017] In an exemplary embodiment, the carbon-based solid material can include at least one selected from carbon black, activated carbon, carbon fiber, carbon nanotube, graphene, natural graphite, artificial graphite, hard carbon and coke.

[0018] In an exemplary embodiment, the inert gas can include argon or nitrogen.

[0019] In an exemplary embodiment, the step of forming the primary precursor mixture can include dry mixing the positive electrode active material mixture and the carbon-based solid material.

[0020] In an exemplary embodiment, the dry mixing can be carried out through a fluidized bed reactor.

[0021] In an exemplary embodiment, in the step of forming the primary precursor mixture, the positive electrode active material mixture and the carbon-based solid material can react at a weight ratio of 4:1 to 9:1.

[0022] In an exemplary embodiment, the water washing treatment can include converting at least a part of the lithium oxide into lithium hydroxide.

[0023] In an exemplary embodiment, the primary precursor mixture may further comprise a transition metal-containing mixture. An aqueous lithium hydroxide solution can be generated by the water washing treatment, and the transition metal-containing mixture can precipitate.

[0024] In an exemplary embodiment, the water washing treatment in the method for recovering a lithium precursor may be carried out in an atmosphere free of carbon dioxide (CO 2 -free).

[0025] In an exemplary embodiment, the lithium composite oxide may be represented by the following Chemical Formula 1.

[0026] [Chemical Formula 1]

[0027] Li x Ni a Co b M (1-a-b) O y

[0028] In Chemical Formula 1, M may be selected from Mn, Na, Mg, Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Cu, Zn, Ge, Sr, Ag, Ba, Zr, Nb, Mo, Al, Ga, and B, and 0 < x ≤ 1.1, 2 ≤ y ≤ 2.02, 0.5 ≤ a ≤ 1, 0 ≤ b ≤ 0.5.

[0029] In an exemplary embodiment, the positive electrode active material mixture may be obtained from a used lithium secondary battery.

[0030] In an exemplary embodiment, the step of preparing the positive electrode active material mixture may include the following steps: separating a positive electrode including a positive electrode current collector, a positive electrode active material, a binder, and a conductive material from the used lithium secondary battery; and subjecting the separated positive electrode to a pulverization treatment or treatment with an organic solvent to remove the positive electrode current collector.

[0031] In an exemplary embodiment, the inert gas atmosphere may not contain an oxidizing gas and a reducing gas.

[0032] Advantageous Effects

[0033] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, by reacting a positive electrode active material mixture with a carbon-based solid material in an inert gas atmosphere, a high-purity lithium precursor can be obtained in a high yield and with high efficiency.

[0034] Lithium oxide is generated by the reaction of the positive electrode active material and the carbon-based solid material, and at the temperature conditions of the above reaction, lithium oxide does not aggregate. Therefore, the lithium precursor can be effectively separated without going through a further pulverization process. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0035] Figure 1 is a schematic flowchart depicting a method for regenerating a lithium precursor according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0036] Figure 2 is an X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern confirming the formation of lithium oxide according to an exemplary embodiment. Detailed Description

[0037] Exemplary embodiments of the present invention provide a method for recovering a lithium precursor by reacting a positive electrode active material mixture containing a lithium composite oxide with a carbon-based solid material in an inert gas atmosphere and performing a water washing treatment. The lithium precursor can be recovered with high yield and high efficiency.

[0038] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, these embodiments are merely exemplary embodiments, and the present invention is not limited to the specific exemplary embodiments.

[0039] The term "precursor" as used in this specification generally refers to a compound containing a specific metal in order to provide the specific metal contained in the electrode active material.

[0040] Figure 1 is a schematic flowchart depicting a method for regenerating a lithium precursor according to an exemplary embodiment.

[0041] Referring to Figure 1 , a positive electrode active material mixture containing a lithium composite oxide can be prepared (e.g., step S10). The positive electrode active material mixture may contain a lithium-containing compound obtained or regenerated from an electrical component or a chemical component. As a non-limiting example, the positive electrode active material mixture may further contain various lithium-containing compounds such as lithium oxide, lithium carbonate, and lithium hydroxide.

[0042] According to an exemplary embodiment, the positive electrode active material mixture can be obtained from a spent lithium secondary battery. The spent lithium secondary battery includes a lithium secondary battery that can no longer be used (charged and discharged) substantially, for example, a lithium secondary battery with a greatly reduced charge and discharge efficiency at the end of its life or a lithium secondary battery damaged by impact or chemical reaction.

[0043] The spent lithium secondary battery may include an electrode assembly including a positive electrode, a negative electrode, and a separator, and the separator is interposed between the positive electrode and the negative electrode. The positive electrode and the negative electrode may each include a positive electrode active material layer and a negative electrode active material layer coated on a positive electrode current collector and a negative electrode current collector, respectively.

[0044] For example, the positive electrode active material contained in the positive electrode active material layer may include an oxide containing lithium and a transition metal.

[0045] In some embodiments, the positive electrode active material may be an NCM-based lithium oxide containing nickel, cobalt, and manganese. The NCM-based lithium oxide as the positive electrode active material may be prepared by reacting a lithium precursor and an NCM precursor (e.g., NCM oxide) with each other, for example, by a coprecipitation reaction.

[0046] However, the embodiments of the present invention can be applied not only to the positive electrode material containing the NCM-based lithium oxide, but also to the lithium-containing positive electrode material.

[0047] Therefore, according to the embodiments of the present invention, a method for regenerating lithium oxide (Li 2 O) or lithium hydroxide (LiOH) as a lithium precursor with a high selectivity ratio can be provided.

[0048] For example, the positive electrode can be separated from the waste lithium secondary battery to recover the waste positive electrode. As described above, the positive electrode includes a positive electrode current collector (e.g., aluminum (Al)) and a positive electrode active material layer, and the positive electrode active material layer may include the above positive electrode active material, a conductive material, and a binder.

[0049] The conductive material may include, for example, carbon-based materials such as graphite, carbon black, graphene, and carbon nanotubes. The binder may include, for example, resin materials such as polyvinylidene fluoride-hexafluoropropylene copolymer (PVDF-co-HFP), polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), polyacrylonitrile, and polymethyl methacrylate.

[0050] The positive electrode active material mixture can be prepared from the recovered positive electrode. In some embodiments, the positive electrode active material mixture can be made into a powder form by physical methods such as grinding. As described above, the positive electrode active material mixture includes powders of lithium-transition metal oxides, and may include, for example, NCM-based lithium oxide powders (e.g., Li(NCM)O 2 )).

[0051] In some embodiments, the recovered positive electrode can also be heat-treated before the grinding process. Therefore, during the grinding process, the desorption of the positive electrode current collector can be promoted, and at least a part of the binder and the conductive material can be removed. The heat treatment temperature can be, for example, about 100 - 500 °C, and preferably about 350 - 450 °C.

[0052] In some embodiments, the positive electrode active material mixture can be obtained by immersing the recovered positive electrode in an organic solvent. For example, the recovered positive electrode can be immersed in an organic solvent to separate and remove the positive electrode current collector, and the positive electrode active material can be selectively extracted by centrifugation.

[0053] Through the above process, a positive electrode active material mixture can be obtained in which components of the positive electrode current collector such as aluminum are substantially completely separated and removed, and the content of the carbon-based components derived from the conductive material and the binder is removed or reduced.

[0054] For example, the lithium composite oxide can include an oxide containing lithium and a transition metal. The transition metal can include, for example, nickel, cobalt, manganese, etc.

[0055] In some embodiments, the lithium composite oxide can be represented by the following Chemical Formula 1.

[0056] [Chemical Formula 1]

[0057] Li x Ni a Co b M (1-a-b) O y

[0058] In Chemical Formula 1, M can be selected from Mn, Na, Mg, Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Cu, Zn, Ge, Sr, Ag, Ba, Zr, Nb, Mo, Al, Ga, and B, and 0 < x ≤ 1.1, 2 ≤ y ≤ 2.02, 0.5 ≤ a ≤ 1, 0 ≤ b ≤ 0.5.

[0059] According to an exemplary embodiment, a lithium composite oxide having a Ni content of 0.5 molar ratio or more can be effectively converted into lithium oxide.

[0060] The positive electrode active material mixture can be reacted with a carbon-based solid material in an inert gas atmosphere to form a primary precursor mixture (e.g., step S20). The primary precursor mixture can include lithium oxide.

[0061] The positive electrode active material mixture and the carbon-based solid material can be reacted at a temperature of 740 °C or higher. Within the above temperature range, the lithium composite oxide contained in the positive electrode active material mixture can be converted into lithium oxide. For example, when the reaction temperature is lower than 740 °C, lithium carbonate can be formed instead of lithium oxide.

[0062] In an exemplary embodiment, the positive electrode active material mixture and the carbon-based solid material may be reacted at a temperature above 740 °C. In this case, the lithium carbonate generated by the reaction may be 1 / 10 or less with respect to the weight of lithium oxide. Therefore, the lithium recovery yield through the process can be increased. Preferably, the reaction may be carried out at a temperature above 840 °C. In this case, lithium carbonate may not be substantially generated. "Not substantially generated" in this specification may mean that 1 part by weight or less is formed with respect to 100 parts by weight of lithium oxide.

[0063] In some embodiments, the reaction temperature of the positive electrode active material mixture and the carbon-based solid material may be 1200 °C or less. When the reaction temperature exceeds 1200 °C, the positive electrode active material mixture, the transition metal-containing mixture, lithium oxide, etc. may react with each other to form by-products. Therefore, the purity and yield of the lithium precursor may be reduced.

[0064] In an exemplary embodiment, the carbon-based solid material may include a crystalline carbon material or an amorphous carbon material. For example, it may include at least one selected from carbon black, activated carbon, carbon fiber, carbon nanotube, graphene, natural graphite, artificial graphite, hard carbon, and coke. Preferably, carbon black or activated carbon can effectively react with the positive electrode active material mixture. The carbon-based solid material is oxidized when reacting with the lithium composite oxide and can promote the decomposition of the lithium composite oxide.

[0065] In an exemplary embodiment, the inert gas may include argon or nitrogen. For example, the inside of the reactor in which the positive electrode active material mixture and the carbon-based solid material react may be replaced with the inert gas. Therefore, the inside of the reactor can be formed into an inert gas atmosphere. For example, the replacement may include purging.

[0066] In some embodiments, the inert gas atmosphere may not include an oxidizing gas or a reducing gas. For example, the inside of the reactor may include an atmosphere filled only with the inert gas. Therefore, for example, the formation of by-products such as lithium carbonate formed by the reaction of carbon dioxide gas as a reducing gas with the lithium component can be suppressed.

[0067] For example, the oxidizing gas may include oxygen, and the reducing gas may include hydrogen, carbon monoxide gas, carbon dioxide gas, etc.

[0068] In an exemplary embodiment, the positive electrode active material mixture and the carbon-based solid material may be dry-mixed. For example, a liquid phase substance such as a solvent may not be added to the inside of the reactor. The positive electrode active material mixture and the carbon-based solid material may be stirred inside the reactor.

[0069] In an exemplary embodiment, the reactor may include a fluidized bed reactor. For example, the dry mixing may be carried out in a fluidized bed reactor. The positive electrode active material mixture and the carbon-based solid material may be added to the fluidized bed reactor, and the reaction may be carried out inside the fluidized bed reactor.

[0070] For example, the inert gas may be injected from the lower part of the fluidized bed reactor so that the inert gas passes through the bottom of the positive electrode active material mixture. In this case, a swirling flow is formed from the lower part of the fluidized bed reactor, so that the positive electrode active material mixture and the carbon-based solid material can be effectively mixed.

[0071] In an exemplary embodiment, the positive electrode active material mixture and the carbon-based solid material may be mixed at a weight ratio of 4:1 to 9:1. When the usage amount of the positive electrode active material mixture is less than 4:1, the yield of lithium oxide may decrease. When the usage amount of the positive electrode active material mixture exceeds 9:1, the conversion of the positive electrode active material mixture to lithium oxide may be insufficient. Preferably, the positive electrode active material mixture and the carbon-based solid material may be mixed at a weight ratio of 5:1 to 9:1.

[0072] In an exemplary embodiment, the primary precursor mixture may further contain a transition metal-containing mixture. The transition metal-containing mixture may contain transition metals, transition metal-containing oxides, etc. The transition metals may include nickel, cobalt, manganese, etc.

[0073] The transition metal component of the transition metal-containing mixture may be derived from the lithium composite oxide. For example, in the reaction of converting the lithium composite oxide into lithium oxide, the transition metal component may be separated to form the transition metal-containing mixture. In this case, the lithium composite oxide may be decomposed to form lithium oxide and the transition metal-containing mixture.

[0074] The primary precursor mixture may be subjected to a water washing treatment (for example, step S30). Through the water washing treatment, the lithium oxide in the primary precursor mixture is separated and can be provided as a lithium precursor.

[0075] In an exemplary embodiment, at least a part of the lithium oxide may be dissolved in water and converted into lithium hydroxide during the water washing treatment. For example, lithium hydroxide is water-soluble, so an aqueous solution of lithium hydroxide can be generated.

[0076] In this case, lithium oxide can be selectively separated from the primary precursor mixture. Components other than lithium oxide in the primary precursor mixture can precipitate at the bottom of the aqueous solution (the bottom of the reactor). For example, the transition metal-containing mixture can precipitate.

[0077] The transition metal-containing mixture is separated by filtration treatment, and a lithium precursor containing high-purity lithium hydroxide can be obtained.

[0078] For example, the lithium hydroxide aqueous solution is separated, and water is evaporated or crystallization is carried out by recrystallization, fractional crystallization, etc., so that a lithium precursor in the form of lithium hydroxide or lithium oxide can be recovered.

[0079] In some embodiments, the transition metal-containing mixture separated by precipitation can be treated with an acid solution to form precursors in the form of metal salts of various transition metals. In one embodiment, sulfuric acid can be used as the acid solution. In this case, NiSO 4 , MnSO 4 , and CoSO 4 can be separately recovered as the transition metal precursors.

[0080] In some embodiments, the water washing treatment can be carried out under the condition of excluding carbon dioxide (CO 2 ). For example, the water washing treatment is carried out in an atmosphere free of CO 2 (for example, an air atmosphere from which CO 2 has been removed), so that the re-generation of lithium carbonate can be prevented.

[0081] In one embodiment, a gas free of CO 2 is used to purge the water provided during the water washing treatment (for example, nitrogen purging), so that an atmosphere free of CO 2 can be formed.

[0082] In the comparative example, when a lithium composite oxide is reduced with hydrogen, lithium hydroxide can be formed. The melting point of lithium hydroxide is 462 °C. Therefore, under the temperature conditions (450 - 700 °C) of the hydrogen reduction treatment, the formed lithium hydroxide may partially melt. Therefore, during the cooling process after the hydrogen reduction treatment, lithium hydroxide may aggregate with each other or aggregate with the transition metal-containing mixture. In this case, in order to effectively separate lithium hydroxide, the aggregated lithium hydroxide needs to be crushed.

[0083] According to an exemplary embodiment, the lithium component of the lithium composite oxide can be converted into lithium oxide. The melting point of lithium oxide is about 1438 °C, and the lithium composite oxide and the carbon-based solid material can react at a temperature lower than the melting point of lithium oxide. Therefore, lithium oxide does not aggregate, and lithium oxide can be effectively separated without a further pulverization process.

[0084] Hereinafter, to assist in understanding the present invention, experimental examples including specific examples and comparative examples are described, but these are only for illustrating the present invention and not for limiting the scope of rights. Various changes and modifications can be made to the embodiments within the scope and technical idea of the present invention, which will be obvious to those skilled in the art, and such changes and modifications also fall within the scope of rights.

[0085] Experimental Example 1

[0086] After separating the positive electrode from the waste lithium secondary battery and removing the current collector in the positive electrode, a positive electrode active material mixture was prepared.

[0087] The positive electrode used was a positive electrode having a positive electrode active material layer formed thereon, and the positive electrode active material layer contained a positive electrode active material having a composition of about LiNi 0.8 Co 0.1 Mn 0.1 O 2 in a weight ratio of 92:5:3, acetylene black (Denka Black) conductive material, and a PVDF binder.

[0088] The results of performing XRD analysis (X-Ray Diffraction Spectroscopy) on the positive electrode active material mixture at room temperature (30 °C) are shown in Figure 2 .

[0089] In addition, after adding the positive electrode active material mixture (25 g) and carbon black (5 g) having a particle size of about 0.5 μm into a reactor purged with argon, stirring was performed, and reactions were carried out at a temperature of 500 - 900 °C for 60 minutes respectively. The results of performing XRD analysis (X-ray diffraction spectrum) on the samples reacted at each temperature are shown in Figure 2 . Referring to Figure 2 , lithium oxide started to appear from 740 °C.

[0090] Experimental Example 2

[0091] After separating the positive electrode from the waste lithium secondary battery and removing the current collector in the positive electrode, a positive electrode active material mixture was prepared.

[0092] The positive electrode uses a positive electrode formed with a positive electrode active material layer, and the positive electrode active material layer contains a positive electrode active material having a composition of about LiNi 0.6 Co 0.2 Mn 0.2 O 2 in a weight ratio of 92:5:3, acetylene black conductive material, and PVDF binder. After adding the positive electrode active material mixture (25 g) and carbon black with a particle size of about 0.5 μm (3 g), stirring is carried out while heating to 600 °C and 900 °C.

[0093] Samples of the reaction of the positive electrode active material mixture and carbon black at 600 °C and 900 °C are extracted, and for the content of lithium compounds in the above samples, through crystal structure analysis according to the Rietveld method based on XRD analysis, the fraction of each phase is calculated and shown in Table 1 below.

[0094] [Table 1]

[0095]

[0096] Referring to Table 1, it was confirmed that Li 2 CO 3 substances were generated at 600 °C, but only Li 2 O substances were generated at 900 °C.

Claims

1. A method for recovering a lithium precursor, comprising: The following steps: Preparing a cathode active material mixture containing a lithium composite oxide containing nickel, cobalt, and manganese; Reacting the cathode active material mixture with a carbon-based solid material in an inert gas atmosphere to form a primary precursor mixture containing lithium oxide; and Subjecting the primary precursor mixture to a water washing treatment to separate the lithium precursor, Wherein the step of forming the primary precursor mixture is carried out at 840-1200 °C, and the inert gas atmosphere does not contain a reducing gas.

2. The method for recovering a lithium precursor according to claim 1, Wherein, In the step of forming the primary precursor mixture, lithium carbonate generated is 1 / 10 or less of the weight of lithium oxide.

3. The method for recovering a lithium precursor according to claim 1, Wherein, The carbon-based solid material contains at least one selected from carbon black, activated carbon, carbon fiber, carbon nanotube, graphene, natural graphite, artificial graphite, hard carbon, and coke.

4. The method for recovering a lithium precursor according to claim 1, Wherein, The inert gas contains argon or nitrogen.

5. The method for recovering a lithium precursor according to claim 1, Wherein, The step of forming the primary precursor mixture includes dry mixing the cathode active material mixture and the carbon-based solid material.

6. The method for recovering a lithium precursor according to claim 5, Wherein, The dry mixing is carried out by a fluidized bed reactor.

7. The method for recovering a lithium precursor according to claim 1, Wherein, In the step of forming the primary precursor mixture, the cathode active material mixture and the carbon-based solid material react at a weight ratio of 4:1 to 9:

1.

8. The method for recovering a lithium precursor according to claim 1, Wherein, The water washing treatment includes converting at least a part of the lithium oxide into lithium hydroxide.

9. The method for recovering a lithium precursor according to claim 1, Wherein, The primary precursor mixture further contains a transition metal-containing mixture, a lithium hydroxide aqueous solution is generated by the water washing treatment, and the transition metal-containing mixture precipitates.

10. The method for recovering a lithium precursor according to claim 1, Wherein, The water washing treatment is carried out in an atmosphere free of carbon dioxide.

11. The method for recovering a lithium precursor according to claim 1, Wherein, The lithium composite oxide is represented by the following Chemical Formula 1: [Chemical Formula 1] Li x Ni a Co b M (1-a-b) O y In Chemical Formula 1, M is selected from Mn, Na, Mg, Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Cu, Zn, Ge, Sr, Ag, Ba, Zr, Nb, Mo, Al, Ga, and B, and 0 < x ≤ 1.1, 2 ≤ y ≤ 2.02, 0.5 ≤ a ≤ 1, 0 ≤ b ≤ 0.

5.

12. The method for recovering a lithium precursor according to claim 1, Wherein, The cathode active material mixture is obtained from a used lithium secondary battery.

13. The method for recovering a lithium precursor according to claim 12, Wherein, The step of preparing the cathode active material mixture includes the following steps: Separating a cathode containing a cathode current collector, a cathode active material, a binder, and a conductive material from the used lithium secondary battery; and The separated positive electrode is pulverized or treated with an organic solvent to remove the positive electrode current collector.

14. The method for recycling a lithium precursor according to claim 1, wherein, the inert gas atmosphere does not contain an oxidizing gas.

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