Process for selectively capturing chemical elements from a polymetallic sample

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2026055006-A1
Application number	US-202318874167-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jun 12, 2023
Priority date	Jun 13, 2022
Publication date	Feb 26, 2026
Grant date	—

Abstract

The present invention relates to a process for selectively capturing chemical elements from a polymetallic liquid sample.

First claim

1 - 15 . (canceled)

16 . A process for capturing chemical elements M1, M2, M3, and optionally M4, contained in a liquid sample, said process comprising the following steps:
a) contacting said liquid sample with at least one amine and optionally CO 2 , so as to obtain a first liquid phase, M1 in a solid form, and optionally M2 in a solid form, b) recovering said M1 in a solid form, and optionally said M2 in a solid form, c) contacting said first liquid phase with copper ions, so as to obtain a second liquid phase, d) contacting said second liquid phase with a carbonate and optionally a hydroxide, so as to obtain a third liquid phase, M3 in a solid form, optionally M4 in a solid form and optionally M2 in a solid form, e) recovering said M3 in a solid form, optionally said M4 in a solid form, and optionally said M2 in a solid form,
said M2 in a solid form being recovered in step b) and/or step e),
M1 being selected from the group consisting of iron, aluminum, titanium, a rare earth, an actinide, and a combination thereof,
M2 being manganese, and
M3 and M4 being each independently selected from the group consisting of nickel, cobalt, and a combination thereof.

17 . The process according to claim 16 , wherein:
M1 is iron, aluminum, a rare earth chosen from lanthanum and praseodymium, or a combination thereof; and/or M3 is nickel and M4 is cobalt.

18 . The process according to claim 16 , wherein:
M1 in a solid form is a carbonate, a hydroxide, an oxide, or a combination thereof, of M1; M2 in a solid form is a carbonate, a hydroxide, an oxide, or a combination thereof, of M2; M3 in a solid form is a carbonate, a hydroxide, an oxide, or a combination thereof, of M3; and/or M4 in a solid form is a carbonate, a hydroxide, an oxide, or a combination thereof, of M4.

19 . The process according to claim 16 , wherein the at least one amine is selected from ethylene diamine, propane diamine, diethylenetriamine, triethylenetetramine, tris-(2-aminoethyl)amine, lysine, glycine, 2,3-diaminopropionic acid, 2,4-diaminobutyric acid, and 2,5-diaminopentanoic acid.

20 . The process according to claim 16 , wherein M2 in a solid form is recovered in step b).

21 . The process according to claim 20 , wherein:
step a) comprises contacting said liquid sample with at least one amine and optionally CO 2 , so as to obtain a first liquid phase, M1 in a solid form, and M2 in a solid form, and step b) comprises recovering successively said M1 in a solid form and said M2 in a solid form.

22 . The process according to claim 20 , wherein steps a)-b) comprise:
i) contacting the liquid sample with at least one amine, so as to obtain a liquid phase L0 and M1 in a solid form, ii) recovering said M1 in a solid form, iii) contacting said liquid phase L0 with CO 2 and optionally at least one amine, under an inert atmosphere, so as to obtain said first liquid phase and M2 in a solid form, and iv) recovering M2 in a solid form.

23 . The process according to claim 20 , wherein steps a)-b) comprise:
i′) contacting the liquid sample with at least one amine and CO 2 under an inert atmosphere, so as to obtain a liquid phase L0′, ii′) heating said liquid phase L0′ to a temperature T 1 above room temperature, under an inert atmosphere, so as to obtain a liquid phase L0″ and M1 in a solid form, iii′) recovering said M1 in a solid form, iv′) heating said liquid phase L0″ to a temperature T 2 above room temperature, under an oxygen-containing atmosphere, so as to obtain said first liquid phase and M2 in a solid form, and v′) recovering M2 in a solid form.

24 . The process according to claim 23 , wherein the temperatures T 1 and T 2 are each independently comprised between 70° C. and 110° C.

25 . The process according to claim 20 , wherein steps d)-e) comprise:
α) contacting said second liquid phase with a carbonate and optionally a hydroxide, so as to obtain a liquid phase L1 and M3 in a solid form, β) recovering said M3 in a solid form, γ) contacting said liquid phase L1 with a reducing agent, so as to obtain the third liquid phase and M4 in a solid form, and δ) recovering said M4 in a solid form.

26 . The process according to claim 25 , wherein said reducing agent is a solid metal.

27 . The process according to claim 26 , wherein the solid metal is metallic cobalt, metallic iron, or metallic copper.

28 . The process according to claim 25 , wherein the reducing agent is CO 2 or activated carbon.

29 . The process according to claim 16 , wherein M2 in a solid form and optionally M4 in a solid form are recovered in step e).

30 . The process according to claim 29 , wherein M2, M3 and optionally M4, each in a solid form, are recovered in the form of one single salt.

31 . The process according to claim 30 , wherein the single salt is a carbonate, a hydroxide or a combination thereof.

32 . The process according to claim 16 , wherein said liquid sample further comprises a chemical element M5, and said process further comprises, after step e), the following steps:
f) precipitating M5 in a solid form from the third liquid phase, so as to obtain M5 in a solid form and a fourth liquid phase, and g) recovering M5 in a solid form by filtration, centrifugation, or reverse osmosis, wherein M5 is copper.

33 . The process according to claim 16 , further comprising before step a):
a step of leaching lithium from a solid sample comprising lithium, M1, M2, M3 and optionally M4, so as to obtain leached lithium and a solid sample comprising M1, M2, M3 and optionally M4; a step of recovering said leached lithium; and a step of converting said solid sample comprising M1, M2, M3 and optionally M4, into said liquid sample comprising M1, M2, M3 and optionally M4.

34 . The process according to claim 16 , wherein said liquid sample further comprises lithium and said process further comprises, after step e) or step g):
h) concentrating said third or fourth liquid phase, so as to obtain lithium in a solid form, and j) recovering lithium in a solid form.

35 . The process according to claim 34 , wherein lithium is recovered by filtration, centrifugation, or reverse osmosis.

Assignees

• Mecaware Sas
• Institut Nat Des Sciences Appliquees De Lyon Insa
• Ecole Sup Chimie Phys Electroniq Lyon Cpe Lyon
• Univ Claude Bernard Lyon
• Centre Nat Rech Scient

Inventors

• Leclaire Julien
• Ducreux Maxime

Classifications

• H01M10/54

  Reclaiming serviceable parts of waste accumulators · CPC title

• C22B47/00

  Obtaining manganese · CPC title

• C22B26/12

  Obtaining lithium · CPC title

• C22B23/0461

  by chemical methods · CPC title

• C22B21/0023

  from waste materials · CPC title