CORE STAGE
4 Mechanical Recycling & Material Separation
Updated 04/2025
Short Description
Material separation—commonly referred to as mechanical recycling—is a standalone process that takes in charged or discharged batteries and outputs black mass along with sorted metal and plastic fractions.
The process begins with shredding to break open the battery structure and expose internal components. Shredding is often done in water or under inert atmosphere for safety. Electrolyte is removed by evaporation or pyrolysis.
After shredding, physical separation techniques such as milling, sieving, air classification, and magnetic separation are used to isolate black mass (containing anode and cathode materials) from other streams. Graphite can optionally be removed through flotation.
Inputs
Outputs
Sub-Processes
4.1 Shredding
Batteries are mechanically shredded to reduce size and expose internal components. This step can be performed on charged or discharged batteries and often takes place under water or in an inert atmosphere to prevent fire or gas release.
4.2 Electrolyte Removal
Electrolyte is removed through evaporation or thermal treatment (e.g., pyrolysis) to neutralize hazardous substances and prepare materials for further processing. This step improves safety and the efficiency of downstream separation.
4.3 Physical Separation
Dried battery shreds are mechanically sorted to remove impurities like plastics, metals, and graphite. Step by step, clean fractions are separated using sieves, air classifiers, magnets, eddy current, and optional flotation for higher black mass purity.
Relevant Product Groups
These are relevant product groups for Material Separation. All listed solutions are vetted by industry experts to ensure they meet real-world recycling needs. Our supplier network is growing, with more products under review.
Products & Solutions
Core Question
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Guidelines & Regulations
The Governmental Regulations section outlines key policies and legal frameworks that govern battery production, usage, recycling, and disposal to ensure safety, sustainability, and compliance with environmental standards.
⚠️ Please note: This section does not represent a complete or exhaustive overview of all applicable regulations. It is intended for general orientation only and should not be considered legal advice or regulatory interpretation. For detailed compliance guidance, always consult the official legislation or a qualified regulatory expert.
Sets pollution limits (air, water, and land) for industrial installations. Shredding and pre-treatment facilities that process more than 75 tonnes per day fall under its scope. To obtain permits, these facilities must stay below emission thresholds for regulated pollutants, as defined by the Best Available Techniques (BAT) documents. The BAT reference document for waste treatment was published in 2018.
Innovations & Trends
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Recommended Paper
Shredding of Lithium-Ion Batteries: Overview and Industrial Perspective
Summarizes key shredding methods used in battery recycling, including safety measures, process environments.
Electrolyte recovery from spent Lithium-Ion batteries using a low temperature thermal treatment process
Recovering electrolyte at different temperatures – off-gas analysis
Implementation of a sub-and supercritical carbon dioxide process for the selective recycling of the electrolyte from spent Li-ion battery
Research approach to recover electrolyte
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