Molecular electron donors enabled thermodynamically controlled regeneration of spent battery cathodes
발표자
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초록
내용
An energy-efficient, profitable, and safe technology to recycle lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) is crucial for their continued adoption in electric vehicles and grid energy storage. Herein, using recyclable electron donors (REDs) with redox potentials ranging between cathode operation and over-lithiation potentials, we establish thermodynamically controlled Li-coupled electron transfer from REDs to cathodes as a viable route for directly regenerating spent cathodes under ambient conditions. The RED-based lithiation universally applies to cathode materials with heterogeneous Li loss, bypassing the need for Li quantification and cathode separation processes in recycling. We further demonstrate that the used regeneration solution can be refreshed simply by mixing with reductants, enabling reuse in lithiation and thereby promising minimal cost and chemical waste in battery recycling. The proposed cathode regeneration method under ambient temperature and pressure will propel the development of facile and scalable LIB recycling technologies.