Core-Shell Cathode Material Using Recycled Battery Leachate

The patent combines multiple separate extraction processes into a single integrated wet process that directly converts waste battery materials into positive electrode active material precursors. Instead of sequentially extracting nickel, cobalt, and manganese using separate extractants, the invention uses a unified chemical treatment approach that simultaneously recovers all valuable metals and directly forms the precursor material, thereby simplifying the overall process flow and reducing the number of process steps.

The wet process described in the patent serves multiple functions simultaneously: it extracts valuable metals from waste batteries, purifies the leaching solution, and directly prepares the precursor material for positive electrode active material synthesis. This multi-functional approach eliminates the need for separate extraction and purification stages, reducing process complexity while maintaining effective metal recovery.

The patent combines multiple separate extraction processes into a single integrated wet process that directly converts waste battery materials into positive electrode active material precursors. Instead of sequentially extracting nickel, cobalt, and manganese using separate extractants, the invention uses a unified chemical treatment approach that simultaneously recovers all valuable metals and directly forms the precursor material, thereby simplifying the overall process flow and reducing the number of process steps.

The wet process is designed to utilize the leaching solution itself as both the extraction medium and the precursor for material synthesis. The process exploits the chemical properties of the leaching solution to directly form the positive electrode active material precursor, eliminating the need for additional expensive extractants and purification agents, thereby reducing extraction costs.

The patent applies a selective extraction approach where the wet process specifically targets and extracts valuable metals (nickel, cobalt, manganese) from the waste battery matrix while leaving impurities behind. The chemical treatment is designed to dissolve and separate the target metals with high selectivity, ensuring that the resulting leaching solution contains high concentrations of valuable metals with minimal contamination from other battery components.

The wet process described in the patent serves multiple functions simultaneously: it extracts valuable metals from waste batteries, purifies the leaching solution, and directly prepares the precursor material for positive electrode active material synthesis. This multi-functional approach eliminates the need for separate extraction and purification stages, reducing process complexity while maintaining effective metal recovery.

The patent converts the potentially harmful leaching solution, which would normally require complex solvent extraction and disposal procedures, into a beneficial precursor material for synthesizing positive electrode active materials. By transforming the waste stream into a useful intermediate product, the process eliminates environmental hazards associated with toxic extractants and disposal requirements while maintaining effective metal recovery.

The patent implements a comprehensive recovery approach that extracts valuable metals from waste batteries and simultaneously recycles the leaching solution into a useful precursor. Instead of discarding the leaching solution as waste requiring environmentally hazardous disposal, the invention recycles it as the basis for synthesizing new active material, thereby eliminating environmental damage while maximizing resource utilization.

The patent optimizes the composition and parameters of the leaching solution to ensure that the resulting positive electrode active material achieves high performance. By carefully controlling the chemical conditions, metal ratios, and processing parameters of the wet process, the invention produces precursors that yield active materials with capacity and life maintenance rates comparable to those made from pure metals, despite the recycled origin of the materials.

The patent produces positive electrode active materials with a core-shell structure where the composition is optimized to balance performance and cost. The material incorporates metals recovered from waste batteries in a controlled composite structure that maintains electrochemical performance, achieving both ease of manufacture from recycled materials and high reliability in terms of capacity and life maintenance rate.