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Hydrogen Reduction of LiCoO2 Cathode Material: A Kinetic Study

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Abstract

Metal production is facing new challenges due to climate change and declining primary ore quality; thus, new technologies with sustainable processing routes are needed. One way to address this is to recover metals from secondary resources such as end-of-life batteries using a cleaner reducing agent hydrogen that would reduce direct carbon dioxide emissions during pyrometallurgical processing. Recycling of Li-ion battery cathode materials using hydrogen would result in a more benign metal production process and would simultaneously provide a sustainable solution to treat wastes. This study investigated the kinetics of H2 reduction of LiCoO2 at 600–1000 °C up to 180 min reaction time using an isothermal mass change analysis supported with detailed microstructure evolution observations. The overall reduction mechanism appeared to follow the shrinking-core model with a different rate-limiting step depending on the reduction temperature. The activation energy of reduction at 600–800 °C was calculated to be 37.4 kJ/mol and was controlled by the nucleation step. The information and data obtained are useful when comparing different recycling methods and optimizing the reduction parameters of spent Li-ion battery process.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank and acknowledge the financial support from Swinburne University’s Automotive Engineering Graduate Program (AEGP) by the Australian Government through the Department of Industry, Science, and Resources, and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fluid and Process Dynamics (FPD) Group, Department of Mechanical and Product Design Engineering, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, VIC, 3122, Australia

    Bintang A. Nuraeni, Katri L. Avarmaa, W. John Rankin & M. Akbar Rhamdhani

  2. CSIRO Manufacturing, Clayton, VIC, 3169, Australia

    Leon H. Prentice

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  1. Bintang A. Nuraeni
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  2. Katri L. Avarmaa
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  3. Leon H. Prentice
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Correspondence to Bintang A. Nuraeni or M. Akbar Rhamdhani.

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Nuraeni, B.A., Avarmaa, K.L., Prentice, L.H. et al. Hydrogen Reduction of LiCoO2 Cathode Material: A Kinetic Study. Metall Mater Trans B 55, 319–336 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11663-023-02960-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11663-023-02960-9

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