The United Kingdom, for example, has reportedly struggled to meet battery recycling targets 1. Most batteries collected for recycling are lead-acid batteries, an old battery technology that is being replaced by lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). LIBs are currently recycled at a meagre rate of less than 5% in the European Union 2.
Compared to recycling, reusing recovered materials for battery manufacturing would lessen the environmental footprints and reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) and energy consumption. Thus, to prevent pollution and safeguard the environment, it is necessary to consider recycling spent LIBs and improving production and disposal methods.
Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Through Secondary Aluminum Production. Energy Technology 2017: Carbon Dioxide Management and Other Technologies Waste Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling in JX Nippon Mining & Metals Corporation. Materials Processing Fundamentals 2018 J. Mater. Cycles Waste Manag., 17 (2014), pp. 504 - 512, 10.1007/s10163-014-0265-7
Hence, the waste battery recycling industry holds significant potential for application and development. The recycling of waste batteries faces several challenges, including the establishment of effective recycling channels, high recycling costs, and technical complexities.
Creating a comprehensive battery recycling data monitoring platform and establishing effective regulations controlling the whole battery recycling process may support the improvement and growth of the battery collecting and recycling process.
Research on recapturing nanoengineered materials from battery waste is limited . The experiments on retrieval of carbon nanotubes from lithium ion batteries are also part of this short list of attempts .