Apparatus for recovering active material and method for reusing active material by using same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12438210-B2
Application number	US-202117912017-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 1, 2021
Priority date	Aug 13, 2020
Publication date	Oct 7, 2025
Grant date	Oct 7, 2025

Abstract

An active material recovery apparatus capable of easily recovering an electrode active material from an electrode scrap in its intrinsic shape and a positive electrode active material reuse method using the active material recovery apparatus are provided. The active material recovery apparatus which is a rotary firing apparatus comprising a rod in a screw type therein includes a heat treatment bath and a screening wall arranged in a line along an axis of the rod, wherein the heat treatment bath constitutes a heating zone, and the screening wall constitutes a cooling zone; and an exhaust injection and degassing system, wherein the heat treatment bath removes a binder and a conductive material in an active material layer by performing heat treatment on an electrode scrap comprising the active material layer on a current collector in an air while rotating the electrode scrap around the axis of the rod and separates the current collector from the active material layer, and an active material in the active material layer passes through the screening wall and is recovered as an active material in powder form, and the current collector that does not pass through the screening wall is recovered separately.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An active material recovery apparatus which is a rotary firing apparatus having a rod of a screw type therein, the active material recovery apparatus comprising:
a heat treatment bath and a screening wall arranged in a line along an axis of the rod, wherein the heat treatment bath constitutes a heating zone, and the screening wall constitutes a cooling zone; and
an exhaust injection and degassing system,
wherein the heat treatment bath is configured to removes a binder and a conductive material from an active material layer by performing heat treatment in air on an electrode scrap comprising the active material layer on a current collector while rotating the electrode scrap around the axis of the rod, and separate the current collector from the active material layer, and
wherein an active material in the active material layer passes through the screening wall and is recovered as the active material in powder form, and the current collector that does not pass through the screening wall is recovered separately.

2. The active material recovery apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the heat treatment bath also rotates around the axis of the rod.

3. The active material recovery apparatus of claim 1 , wherein an angle of the entire active material recovery apparatus is adjusted so that the axis of the rod is inclined with respect to a ground.

4. The active material recovery apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the active material recovery apparatus has a vibration function.

5. The active material recovery apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the active material recovery apparatus is a continuous type so that input of a new electrode scrap and recovery of the active material are continuously performed.

6. The active material recovery apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the heat treatment bath has a tubular shape with both ends open so that the electrode scrap is put therein and the separated current collector and active material are transferred to the screening wall, and the heat treatment bath is an open type system through which air enters and exits.

7. The active material recovery apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the screening wall has a tubular shape with both ends open so that the separated current collector and active material are put therein and the current collector is discharged.

8. The active material recovery apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the heat treatment bath is an open type system in which air of 10 mL/min to 100 L/min is added or injected per 100 g of the electrode scrap that is put in.

9. The active material recovery apparatus of claim 1 , wherein air inlets are formed in a plurality of places in the heat treatment bath.

10. A method of reusing a positive electrode active material, comprising:
providing the active material recovery apparatus according to claim 1 ;
feeding a positive electrode scrap into a heat treatment bath, the positive electrode scrap comprising an active material layer on a current collector;
removing a binder and a conductive material from the active material layer by performing heat treatment in air on the positive electrode scrap while rotating the positive electrode scrap around an axis of a rod in the heat treatment bath, and separating the current collector from the active material layer;
recovering an active material in powder form that has passed through the screening wall; and
annealing the active material in air at 400 to 1000° C. to obtain a reusable active material.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the heat treatment is performed at 300 to 650° C.

12. The method of claim 10 , further comprising, before the annealing step, washing the recovered active material with a lithium compound solution showing basicity in an aqueous solution state.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein, before the annealing step and after the washing step, a lithium precursor is added to the active material.

14. The method of claim 12 , further comprising, after the washing step, obtaining the active material to which a lithium precursor is added and of which particles are adjusted, by mixing the washed active material with a lithium precursor solution and spray drying the active material.

15. The method of claim 10 , further comprising performing surface coating on the active material after the annealing step.

Assignees

• Lg Energy Solution Ltd

Inventors

• Kim Min-Seo
• Park Se-Ho
• Yang Doo-Kyung

Classifications

• C22B26/12

  Obtaining lithium · CPC title

• C22B7/008

  by an alkaline or ammoniacal leaching · CPC title

• C22B7/001 Primary

  Dry processes · CPC title

• C22B1/02

  Roasting processes (C22B1/16 takes precedence) · CPC title

• F27B7/34

  Arrangements of heating devices · CPC title