Lithium Battery Diaphragm Paper Recycling via Flotation and Leaching
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for treating waste lithium battery diaphragm paper, such as incineration, result in environmental pollution, resource wastage, and low metal recycling rates due to high energy consumption and difficulties in separating valuable metals like aluminum and copper.
Innovation Solution
A method combining physics and chemistry techniques, involving shearing and crushing of diaphragm paper, pneumatic separation, flotation, eddy-current separation, hydrometallurgy leaching, pickling, filtering, and spin-drying to effectively recycle valuable metals like copper, aluminum, nickel, and cobalt, ensuring environmental friendliness, low energy consumption, and high resource recycling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If incineration method is used to treat diaphragm paper, then processing is simplified, but metal recycling rate decreases and environmental pollution increases
Solution Approach 1:
The treatment process is divided into multiple sequential steps: shearing, crushing, pneumatic separation, flotation, and leaching. Each step targets specific components (light materials, diaphragm paper, battery powder, metals) to progressively separate and recover valuable materials while eliminating pollution.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the treatment parameters from high-temperature incineration to controlled mechanical and chemical processes at lower temperatures. The leaching step uses specific pH conditions and chemical reagents to selectively dissolve metals, transforming the treatment approach from thermal destruction to controlled chemical separation.
2Loss of time
If incineration method is used to treat diaphragm paper, then processing time is reduced, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the thermal field (incineration) with mechanical fields (shearing, crushing, pneumatic separation, flotation) and chemical fields (leaching). These mechanical and chemical processes operate at lower energy levels while achieving better metal recovery rates and eliminating the need for high-temperature combustion.
3Ease of operation
If incineration method is used to treat diaphragm paper, then aluminum separation is simplified, but aluminum penetration into battery powder occurs causing separation difficulties
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary separation of aluminum from copper before the leaching process. The pneumatic separation and flotation steps pre-concentrate metals and separate diaphragm paper, preventing aluminum contamination of battery powder beforehand. This preliminary action eliminates the need for complex post-treatment separation processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces intermediate processing steps (pneumatic separation, flotation) that act as mediators between the initial crushed material and the final leaching process. These intermediate steps progressively separate components, with each step preparing the material for the next, preventing direct contact between aluminum and battery powder that would cause contamination.
4Ease of manufacture
If diaphragm paper is not recycled, then processing is simplified, but resource wastage increases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of discarding diaphragm paper through incineration, the patent recovers it through flotation separation. The diaphragm paper is separated from battery powder and metals, then treated independently. This transforms waste material into a recoverable resource, eliminating resource wastage while maintaining processing efficiency through specialized treatment streams.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The method achieves high recycling rates of metallic copper (>98%) and aluminum (>90%), allowing for the reuse of recycled materials and reducing environmental impact and energy consumption.
Implementation Method 1
carrying out pneumatic separation to obtain a light material and a copper-aluminum mixture
Implementation Method 2
putting the light material into a flotation machine for separation to obtain diaphragm paper and battery powder
Implementation Method 3
putting the copper-aluminum mixture into an eddy-current separator for separation to obtain metallic copper and metallic aluminum
Implementation Method 4
carrying out leaching of hydrometallurgy, pickling the diaphragm paper
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to the field of waste battery recycling, and discloses a method for treating waste diaphragm paper of a lithium battery, which includes the following steps of: (1) shearing and crushing waste diaphragm paper, and then carrying out pneumatic separation to obtain a light material and a copper-aluminum mixture; (2) putting the light material into a flotation machine for separation to obtain diaphragm paper and battery powder; and (3) pulping the battery powder, and then carrying out leaching of hydrometallurgy, pickling the diaphragm paper, and then filtering and spin-drying to obtain the diaphragm paper. According to the method, the diaphragm paper is treated by a method combining physics and chemistry, so that valuable metals in the waste diaphragm paper of the lithium battery are effectively recycled, and the industrial production requirements of environmental friendliness, low energy consumption and high resource recycling are satisfied.