Preferentially selective extraction of lithium from spent LiCoO₂ cathodes by medium-temperature carbon reduction roasting

Lithium recovery from spent lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) becomes increasingly important due to the skyrocketing price of lithium. Medium-temperature carbon reduction roasting was reported in this work, which aimed at preferential selective extraction of lithium from spent LiCoO₂ (LCO) cathodes to overcome the incomplete recovery and loss of lithium during the recycling process. The LCO layered structure was destroyed and lithium was completely converted into water-soluble Li₂CO₃ under a suitable temperature to control the reduced state of the cobalt oxide. The Co metal agglomerates generated during medium-temperature carbon reduction roasting were broken by wet grinding and ultrasonic crushing to release the entrained lithium. The results showed that 99.10wt% of the whole lithium could be recovered as Li₂CO₃ with a purity of 99.55wt%. This study provided a new perspective on the preferentially selective extraction of lithium from spent lithium batteries.