Japanese advanced materials company Toray Industries has announced a major breakthrough in lithium-ion battery recycling, unveiling technology that can efficiently recover high-purity lithium using a new high-durability, high-selectivity nanofiltration membrane.
The innovation promises to dramatically boost lithium recovery rates, which conventional recycling methods often fail to capture.
“Establishing a closed-loop cycle for lithium by recycling batteries has become a critical technological challenge as more people adopt electrified vehicles and economies decarbonize,” the company said.
Toray’s new membranes are designed to handle the growing variety of lithium-ion batteries, including nickel-cobalt and nickel- and cobalt-free lithium iron phosphate types. The technology also enables extraction of cobalt and nickel, essential materials for future battery production.
Process for recovering lithium with nanofiltration membrane elements
Previously, Toray’s nanofiltration membranes were used to extract lithium from salt lakes. But recovering lithium from spent batteries presents a harsher challenge: filtering highly acidic sulfuric acid leachate. Conventional membranes lack sufficient acid resistance.
Toray’s solution? A highly durable and selective nanofiltration membrane capable of filtering sulfuric acid leachate from black mass—the material produced after heat-treating end-of-life lithium-ion batteries. According to the company, this is the world’s first technology for selectively separating and recovering lithium using membranes, achieving lab-scale recovery rates exceeding 95%.
“Toray harnessed its expertise in organic synthesis and polymer chemistry and nanotechnology to upscale and widen its highly durable and selective nanofiltration membrane elements,” the company explained. The breakthrough makes it possible to mass-produce modules sized like conventional water treatment elements, allowing Toray to supply samples to customers and accelerate commercialization.
Toray is moving swiftly to expand its supply network, aiming to deploy the technology both in Japan and overseas. The development builds on results from Ministry of Environment-funded demonstration projects in fiscal 2023, which focused on optimizing renewable energy-related products and creating a domestic closed-loop recycling structure, as per the company.
