Material recycling

Increasing recycling rates with higher-quality material flows require further improvement and flexibilization of separation processes. The Fraunhofer THM/IKTS aims to increase the yield and purity of economically strategic raw materials in the recycling of battery storage devices and power electrical components. This includes hydrometallurgical and electrochemical treatment processes as well as the recovery of these products from digestion media and process water. In order to automate material recycling and to design recycling processes in a more efficient and targeted manner, we use appropriate monitoring systems and database solutions

Research topics / services

• Recovery of lithium, nickel, cobalt and other elements from the recycling of Li-ion batteries
• Leaching, precipitation, selective adsorption and liquid-liquid extraction
• Electrochemical treatment steps (deposition, oxidation/reduction)
• Recovery and cleaning of digestion media
• Wastewater treatment including toxic trace substances, organic matter etc.
• Balance and residence time analyses with radiotracers
• Test field for the development of monitoring technologies (incl. test engineering and sensor technology)