Research Report: In-depth Research on Power Lithium Battery Recycling Industry

With the continuous increase in the number of new energy vehicles, the large-scale demand for power lithium batteries will be accompanied by industrial opportunities for lithium battery recovery and echelon utilization. The development of power lithium battery recovery and echelon utilization industries is both necessary(avoiding environmental pollution and waste of resources). It is also of considerable economy.

The resources of used lithium batteries and their harm to the environment have been paid more and more attention

Increasing demand and scrap of power lithium batteries

In 2015, the total output of lithium batteries in China was 47.13 GWh, of which the output of power cells was 16.9 GWh, accounting for 36.07 %; Consumption of lithium batteries production 23.69 GWh, accounting for 50.26 %; Lithium storage battery production of 1.73 GWh, accounting for 3.67 %.

We estimate that by 2020, the demand for power lithium batteries will reach 125 GWh, and the scrap volume will reach 32.2 GWh, about 500,000 tons. By 2023, the scrap volume will reach 101GWh, about 1.16 million tons. The large-scale power lithium electricity market will be accompanied by industrial opportunities for lithium battery recovery and downstream echelon utilization. The development of lithium battery recovery and echelon utilization will also produce considerable economic benefits and investment opportunities while avoiding resource waste and environmental pollution.

In the first half of 2016, China's production and sales of new energy vehicles reached 177,000 and 170,000, respectively, and it is still the world's largest market for new energy vehicles. From January to February, due to the influence of the Spring Festival and policy factors, production and sales were low. With the Advancement of policy adjustments, the new energy vehicles in the first half of the year gradually achieved a resumption of growth from March to June, and Sprint to 35,000 units in June. In the second half of July and August, the new energy vehicles are in a stable state of about 30,000 units, waiting for further growth momentum.

According to the statistics of the China Automobile Association, in August, 21,303 new energy vehicles were produced and 18,054 vehicles were sold, an increase of 2.9 times and 3.5 times respectively, of which 13,121 and 12085 were pure electric vehicles, respectively, a year-on-year increase of 3.8 times and 6.1 times. The production and sales of plug-in hybrid vehicles completed 8182 vehicles and 5969 vehicles, respectively, an increase of 2 times and 1.6 times respectively.

According to the relevant policies of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the subsidy standard for pure electric passenger vehicles has been reduced year by year after considering factors such as scale effect and technological progress. In addition, after the government increased its efforts to check and cheat in the first half of 16 years, it considered adjusting and modifying the policy.

The state will improve the subsidy policy in various aspects, study and establish a dynamic adjustment mechanism, adjust the product structure, and increase the advanced level of subsidized products.

The increase in the government's investigation and compensation will help standardize the development of the industry and enhance the motivation of enterprise's independent technology research and development and industrial upgrading. It also helps to prevent excessive expansion of industrial capacity and improve the policy and institutional environment for the development of the new energy vehicle industry.

The new energy auto industry will still be in the stage of rapid development in the next 3 to 5 years. The policy transformation and industrial structure adjustment are the only way to make the industrial development more healthy and perfect. With the continuous upgrading of electric vehicle technology and the continuous improvement of industrial concentration, the industry will still experience rapid development in the future.

By taking into account factors such as changes in subsidy factors, the number of recharging and switching facilities, the price difference in oil and electricity, and the performance of electric products, we establish the following projections as shown in Figure 4:

The demand and scrap quantity of power batteries are not only closely related to the new output of new energy vehicles, but also related to the proportion of different models, the transfer trend of battery technology routes, the service life of different power cells, and the end-of-life life of different electric models. The current average standards within the industry are as follows, which can be used as a hypothetical condition for predicting the demand for power cells and the amount of end-of-life:

The average mass of different power batteries is: 275kg for plug-in passenger vehicles, 235kg for plug-in commercial vehicles, 550kg for pure electric passenger vehicles, and 1900kg for pure electric commercial vehicles;

According to the statistics of the highway department, the average annual mileage of cars and light vehicles is 50,000 km, 40,000 km for medium-sized vehicles, and 30,000 km for heavy vehicles; Under the same driving conditions, the service life of a pure electric passenger car power battery is about 4-6 years; The pure electric commercial vehicles have many daily trips, long mileage, and frequent charging. The service life of their power cells is about 2-3 years.

At present, the average end-of-life life of private passenger vehicles in China is 12-15 years, the mandatory end-of-life life of commercial vehicles is 10 years, and electric vehicles replace power batteries at least twice in their life cycle, and due to uncertainties(accidents, human causes, etc.). The life cycle of the power cell will continue to change.

According to our calculations, the scrap capacity of lithium batteries used in commercial vehicles(based on the three-year battery life assumption) and passenger vehicles(5 years) will reach 27GWh and 4.2 GWh respectively in 2020 and 84GWh and 17.5 GWh respectively in 2023

According to estimates, the scale of the market created by the recovery of cobalt, nickel, manganese, lithium, iron and aluminum from used power lithium batteries will start to erupt in 2018, reaching 5.2 billion yuan, reaching 13.6 billion yuan in 2020, and will exceed 30 billion yuan in 2023.

If these batteries are not properly disposed of due to the development of the new energy automotive industry, they will cause greater pollution to the environment; In addition, the waste lithium ion batteries have significant resource properties. We will analyze the technical feasibility and cost economy of lithium ion battery recovery below.

The waste power lithium batteries have significant resource properties, of which cobalt and lithium have the highest potential value

The positive, negative, diaphragm, electrolyte and other materials that make up the lithium ion battery contain a large number of valuable metals. The valence metal components contained in the positive electrode materials of different power lithium batteries are different, and the most potentially valuable metals include cobalt, lithium, and nickel. For example, the average content of lithium in ternary batteries is 1.9 %, 12.1 % of nickel, and 2.3 % of cobalt; In addition, the share of the copper and aluminium components also reached 13.3 per cent and 12.7 per cent, which, if properly recycled, would be a major source of income generation and cost reduction.

Cobalt is a silver-gray shiny metal that is malleable and ferromagnetic. Due to its good high temperature resistance, corrosion resistance, and magnetic properties, cobalt is widely used inspecial, mechanical manufacturing, electrical and electronic, chemical, ceramic and other industrial fields. It is a high-temperature alloy, cemented alloy, ceramic pigment, Catalyst, and battery. One of the important raw materials.

Cobalt resources are mostly associated with copper cobalt ore, nickel cobalt ore, arsenic cobalt ore and pyrite ore deposits. There are very few independent cobalt minerals and relatively few land resources. Undersea manganese nodules are important long-term resources for cobalt. The recovery of recycled cobalt is also one of the important sources of cobalt resources. According to USGS data, in 2015, the world produced 123,800 tons of cobalt ore, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo produced 63,000 tons of cobalt ore, accounting for more than 50 % of the total. China only produced 7,700 tons of cobalt metal, accounting for 6.2 % of the total.

The cobalt mine expansion project includes: Etoile LeachSX-EWplant in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2016, Nova Nickel in Australia, ldaho Cobalt in the United States and Northmet, phase1, etc., with a total new capacity of 7,235 tons; There are fewer new projects in 2017. Only Canada's NICO and Zambia's Cobaltreview, etc., added a total of 2,215 tons of new production capacity; In 2018, the new mines in Gladstone Nickel, Australia, and Project Minier, Congo, were put into operation, adding a total capacity of 9,600 tons.

The cobalt mine reduction projects include the Katanga and Mopani projects in Glencore and the Votorantim Metais mine in Brazil, with an estimated reduction of 5,200 tons of metal. As copper and nickel prices continue to slump in the future, it is not ruled out that other large miners will also join the production reduction camp.

Cobalt prices were at inflection point in mid-2016, and are expected to remain in a tight supply balance for the next two years, as demand for cobalt boosted in the first half of 2016 by the rapid growth of the power lithium battery market and expectations of reduced production in major mines. In the global market, 42 per cent of cobalt demand is concentrated in lithium batteries, followed by superalloys(16 per cent) and cemented carbide(10 per cent); From the Chinese market, battery materials account for as much as 69 %. With the gradually clear demand for new energy vehicles downstream, domestic power battery manufacturers have expanded their production capacity from 2016 to 2017, and the demand for cobalt will further increase. Therefore, recovery and reuse of cobalt from used batteries is also increasingly economical.

Lithium is widely used as an element in powered lithium batteries. Its use is very extensive, and the price of lithium carbonate on the market is constantly rising. The demand for new energy vehicles, especially the expansion of demand for new energy vehicles, and the difficulty of supply capacity release. The price of lithium carbonate, More and more companies are beginning to pay attention to the economic benefits of lithium battery recycling.

Lithium resources are widely distributed in nature. However, the barriers to the extraction process of lithium resources are relatively high. Therefore, the pattern of supply and demand is relatively stable. In recent years, the changes in the supply side mainly include: galactic resources reproduction(MtCatlin mine); SQM established a joint venture company to develop 40,000 tons of Cauchari-Olaroz project in Salt Lake, Argentina; ALB has strengthened cooperation with local Chilean companies. In 2020, it is expected to form three lithium salt plants in Chile, totaling 70,000 tons of LCE production scale.

In 2015, lithium batteries accounted for more than 50 % of all lithium demand; According to SQM's forecast, the composite growth of lithium demand from 2016 to 2025 will reach 8 % -12 %, of which the composite growth of lithium demand for power Lithium will reach 18 % -24 %. According to this forecast, the global demand for lithium in 2025 will reach 490,000 tons.

The unveiling of TeslaModel 3 also brought an increase in demand for high-end lithium hydroxide. The goal set by Tesla is to achieve the established production capacity construction target of 500,000 vehicles per year and 35 Gwh/year of Super battery plant by 2020. Assuming that 80 % of the target can be achieved and the lithium carbonate consumption is 0.6 tons/kwh, the lithium demand is 16,800 tons(LCE). This phenomenal-level event will also promote the development of the entire industry.

Judging from the sales volume of ternary materials, the sales volume of ternary materials in the global market has shown a rapid growth trend, from 12,000 tons in 2009 to more than 90,000 tons in 2015, and the annual composite growth rate has reached 40 %. According to the analysis of the development trend of the future ternary material enterprises, the ratio of production capacity of the leading domestic ternary material enterprises in the future will remain at a high level, and it is expected that the proportion of production capacity of the top ten enterprises in the future will remain at more than 80 %.

Judging from the production capacity of ternary materials, it is expected that the power ternary material production capacity in 2016 will exceed 71,000 tons per year, and the annual compound growth rate from 2016 to 2018 will reach 56 %.

Lithium carbonate is a direct product extracted from salt lakes and lithium ores. It is a basic raw material for other lithium products. Lithium hydroxide is currently mainly used in the production of NCA ternary materials and high nickel NCM ternary materials. The demand increases with the demand for ternary materials.

Due to the high stability of lithium hydroxide, no carbon monoxide interference is produced during the reaction process, which helps to increase the solid density of the material. Compared with lithium carbonate, it is more suitable as a basic lithium salt for the synthesis of three-membered cathode materials.

Lithium hydroxide is the basic raw material for the synthesis of lithium-rich manganese positive electrode materials. Lithium-rich manganese-based cathode material xLi2MnO3? (1-x) LiMO2 has a high specific capacity(200 ~ 300mAh/g) and can well meet the requirements for the use of lithium batteries in small electronic products and electric vehicles. It is the most promising next-generation power lithium ion battery positive electrode material.

Lithium carbonate is mainly extracted from lithium-pyroxene in China. Sulfate method and limestone baking method are used. The higher cost is about 2.2-32 ,000 yuan per ton. A small amount of lithium carbonate is extracted from Salt Lake brine. In view of the relatively high Salt Lake magnesium lithium and poor brine grade in China, calcination and solvent extraction methods are used. The cost is lower than that of extraction from ore, but it is still higher than that of foreign salt lakes. Lithium cost, And the yield is limited due to poor production conditions.

Foreign countries such as Alberta and SQM in the United States Yinfeng Salt Lake and Zhiliataqiama Salt Lake, mainly use evaporation precipitation to extract lithium carbonate. This method is the lowest cost, at 12,000 to 19,000 yuan per ton, and is currently the mainstream method of lithium carbonate production.

The energy-saving rate of metal recycling is between 70 % and 90 %. If batteries are used to recycle raw materials to produce batteries, it has an absolute advantage in energy conservation and emission reduction. Considering the economics of lithium ion battery recovery, we need to consider the whole life cycle of the battery. Battery raw materials are mainly non-ferrous metals. There is a significant gap between the energy consumption level of China's non-ferrous metals industry and the international advanced level. Energy consumption is mainly concentrated in three fields: mining, smelting and processing. However, the energy consumption of non-ferrous metal recovery process is much smaller than that of primary metals.

Disused power cells threaten the environment and human health and affect the sustainable development of society

Potential threats to the environment and human health from used power cells. The existing treatment methods for used batteries mainly include solidified deep burial, storage in waste mines, and recycling. However, at present, the capacity for recycling batteries in China is limited, and most of the used batteries have not been effectively disposed of. Will pose a potential threat to the natural environment and human health.

Although power cells do not contain toxic heavy metal elements such as mercury, cadmium, and lead, they also cause environmental pollution. For example, once its electrode material enters the environment, the positive metal ions of the battery, the negative carbon dust, the strong alkali and heavy metal ions in the electrolyte may cause heavy environmental pollution, including raising the pH value of the soil, and improper handling may produce toxic gases.

In addition, metals and electrolytes contained in power cells can be harmful to human health. For example, cobalt may cause symptoms such as intestinal disorders, deafness, and myocardial ischemia.

The issue of power cell recycling has affected the sustainable development of the society economy. Electric vehicles have the advantage of coping with environmental pollution and energy shortage. If the power battery can not be effectively recycled after its retirement, it will cause environmental pollution and waste of resources, which is contrary to the original intention of developing electric vehicles. For enterprises, the recycling of power batteries is a huge business opportunity. After recycling, it can save the cost of raw materials for battery manufacturers. In addition, the recycling of power batteries is also related to the government's construction of a low-carbon economy and an environmentally friendly society.

Analysis of Power Lithium Battery Recovery Channel and Business Model

At present, the recycling channels of small workshops are the main ones, and will be standardized with the expansion of scale.

The life cycle of power cells includes production, use, scrap, decomposition, and reuse. In addition to the decline in chemical activity after its retirement, the battery's internal chemical composition has not changed, except that its charging and discharging performance can not meet the power requirements of the vehicle, but it can be used in places where the power requirements of the car are lower. The echelon utilization of power cells has thus become one of the most explored recycling methods in the industry. After the battery is eliminated, it will be used in energy storage or related power supply base stations, street lights, low-speed electric bodies, and finally enter the recycling system. But the business model also faces profitable considerations, involving channels and technology.

As mentioned above, the recycling of power lithium batteries can be divided into two cyclic processes:(1) Echelon utilization: mainly for the reduction of battery capacity so that the battery can not operate properly, but the battery itself is not scrapped and can still be used in other ways. Continue to use, For example, for power storage; (2) Dismantling and recycling: It is mainly aimed at the serious loss of battery capacity, which makes it impossible for batteries to continue to be used. Only the batteries are repurposed to recover renewable resources that have a useful value.

The recycling channels of power lithium batteries are mainly small recovery workshops. There are fewer professional recycling companies and government recycling centers, and the system needs to be reorganized. At present, most of the used power cells in the power cell recycling market in China flow into small refurbished workshops that lack qualifications. These companies lag behind in their technological equipment, but if they are sent to regular enterprises that are legally registered to pay taxes, they will be qualified and discharged according to national standards. It is necessary to further improve the policy to ensure the sustainable development of battery recycling industry.

Small recycling workshops: low recycling costs can raise recycling prices, and high recycling is their greatest competitive advantage. However, after these small workshops have been recycled, only the old power cells have been simply repaired and repackaged and then flowed back to the market, disrupting the normal order of the power cell market. In addition, because these small workshops do not have relevant qualifications, they are prone to safety hazards and environmental protection problems.

Professional recycling company: professional recycling company is a specialized enterprise approved by the state to recycle used power batteries. Comprehensive strength, advanced technology and equipment, and process specifications can not only maximize the recycling of available resources, but also reduce the impact on the environment. At present, China's specialized power battery recycling companies include Shenzhen Green America, Bangpu recycling technology, Chaowei Group and Fangyuan environmental protection. At present, although there are more and more enterprises in the area of lithium battery recycling, there is a lack of government system support and policy incentives.

Government recycling centers: Local governments set up national recycling centers in accordance with relevant national laws, which is conducive to scientific and standardized management of the battery recycling market, improvement of recovery networks, rational distribution of recovery networks and recovery markets, and increase the recovery volume of formal channels. At present, there is no government recycling center for power batteries in China, but in the future, we can choose to develop according to the reality of our country.

Battery recycling industry in developed countries is dominated by market regulation and supplemented by government constraints

Germany: Government legislation on recycling, producers bear the main responsibility, set up a fund to improve the market-oriented recycling system.

The EU Waste Framework Directive(2008/98/EC) and the Battery Recycling Directive(2006/66/EC) are the legislative basis for the German battery recycling regulations. Recycling regulations require manufacturers, sellers, recyclers, and consumers in the battery industry chain to have corresponding recovery responsibilities and obligations. For example, battery manufacturers must be registered with the government, assume primary recovery responsibilities, and sellers must cooperate with battery manufacturers. Battery recovery work, Terminal consumers need to return used batteries to the designated recycling network.

In addition, Germany has established a recycling system for used batteries using funds and deposit mechanisms, which has achieved good results. The recycling system is operated by the GRS Fund jointly established by battery manufacturers and the Electronic Appliance Manufacturers Association. It is the largest lithium-ion battery recycling organization in Europe. The organization began recycling industrial batteries in 2010. In the future, it will also include electric vehicle power batteries in the system to recycle and actively carry out the recycling of power cells.

In 2015, Bosch Group, BMW and Wattenford launched a cooperation project on the reuse of power cells. The project uses BMW ActiveE and i3 pure electric vehicle decommissioned batteries to build a large 2MW/2MWh photovoltaic power station energy storage system. The energy storage system is operated and maintained by the company Wattenford. The project will be built in Berlin, Germany and is expected to be operational by the end of 2015.

Japan: The production method gradually changes to the "recycling" model, and companies participate as pioneers in battery recovery.

In 1994, Japanese battery manufacturers began implementing a recycling battery program. Based on the voluntary efforts of each participant, they used the service network of retailers, car dealers or gas stations to recycle used batteries from consumers. The recycling route is the opposite of the sales route.

Since 2000, the government has stipulated that manufacturers should be responsible for the recovery of nickel-metal hydride and lithium batteries, and product-oriented design based on resource recovery; After the battery is recovered, it is returned to the battery manufacturing enterprise for treatment. The government gives the production enterprise corresponding subsidies to increase the enthusiasm of the enterprise for recycling.

In addition, many Japanese companies are also involved in battery recycling activities. The Japanese company and Sumitomo Corporation have established 4RENGE Co., Ltd., which is committed to the recycling and utilization of lithium batteries for electric vehicles; Honda is developing technology to extract recovered precious metals from batteries and is working with other metal manufacturers to promote recycling of resources; Sanyo has studied and developed the route for recycling batteries and actively carried out the recycling and reuse of rechargeable batteries.

Major Japanese communications companies have also set up a joint initiative to promote the autonomous recycling of lithium batteries, stating that it has the responsibility to promote the recycling of lithium batteries and strive to significantly increase the recovery rate of lithium batteries.

The United States: The market is mainly regulated. The government regulates and manages it through the establishment of environmental protection standards to assist in the recovery of used power cells.

The United States has established the American Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation(RBRC) and the American Portable Rechargeable Battery Association(PRBA) in the United States market to continuously educate the public, raise public awareness of environmental protection, and guide the public to cooperate with the recycling of used batteries. To protect the natural environment.

RBRC is a non-profit public service organization that mainly promotes the recycling of rechargeable batteries such as nickel-chromium batteries, nickel-metal hydride batteries, lithium-ion batteries, and small sealed lead batteries. PRBA is a non-profit battery association composed of related battery companies. Its main goal is to develop recovery plans and measures to promote the recycling of industrial batteries.

RBRC provides three programs to collect, transport, and reuse used rechargeable batteries. Including(1) retail recycling programmes; (2) Community recycling programmes; (3) Corporate and public sector recycling programmes.

The Portable Rechargeable Battery Association(PBRC) mainly involves three aspects:(1) US DOT regulations on lithium ion batteries, lithium metal batteries, and related regulations during transportation; (2) CPSC's recall of notebook batteries and mobile phone batteries; (3) The main laws and regulations on batteries.

In academia, the University of California at Davis 'Hybrid Electric Vehicle Research Center also conducted research on the secondary use and value analysis of powered lithium batteries in 2010. The research includes specific requirements for battery performance in 4 to 5 battery reuse fields, product research and development for Home Energy Storage Systems(HESA), and methods for evaluating the overall value of batteries(the sum of the value of electric vehicles and secondary use fields). system.

China has clearly adopted the extended producer responsibility system. With the continuous improvement of policies, the industry is gradually becoming standardized

At present, China's current situation: the development of power battery recycling technology is relatively mature, but the management is relatively backward, which hinders the development of power battery recycling industry. The main manifestations are:

(1) The recovery network is not sound. The recycling network is mainly composed of small and medium-sized recycling companies, and it is difficult to obtain effective recycling;

(2) The recycling enterprise is small in size, the process level is not sound, and it is difficult to ensure the efficiency of resource recovery;

(3) There are enterprises that illegally engage in the recycling of used and end-of-life power batteries without operating licenses, which brings about safety and environmental protection hazards.

With the continuous growth of the production and sales of new energy vehicles, the recycling and utilization of electric vehicle power batteries will become more and more prominent. National and local governments have successively issued policies to speed up the process of building a benign industrial ecosystem.

In July 2012, the "Energy Conservation and New Energy Vehicle Industry Development Plan" clearly proposed to "formulate management measures for power battery recycling, establish a power battery cascade utilization and recovery management system, and guide power battery manufacturers to strengthen the recovery and utilization of used batteries. Encourage the development of specialized battery recycling enterprises. "

In July 2014, the General Office of the State Council's Guiding Opinions on Accelerating the Promotion and Application of New Energy Vehicles proposed to study and formulate policies for power cell recycling, explore the use of funds, deposits, and compulsory recycling to promote the recovery of used power cells, and establish a sound recycling system for used power cells.

In March 2015, the "Standard Conditions for the Automobile Power Battery Industry" stipulated that system enterprises should jointly study and formulate an operational plan for the recovery, treatment and reuse of used power batteries.

In January 2016, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the Ministry of Commerce, and the five ministries and commissions of the General Administration of Quality Supervision and Inspection jointly issued the "Technical Policy on the Recovery and Utilization of Electric Vehicle Power Battery(2015 Edition)", which clearly established a power cell coding system and established a traceability system. We will clearly adopt an extended producer responsibility system, whereby electric vehicle manufacturers bear the main responsibility for the recycling and utilization of used power batteries of electric vehicles, and power battery manufacturers bear the main responsibility for the recycling and utilization of used power batteries outside the after-sales service system of electric vehicle manufacturers. Step-level battery production enterprises shall bear the main responsibility for the recycling and utilization of cascade batteries. The recycling and dismantling enterprises of end-of-life automobiles shall be responsible for the recovery of power batteries on end-of-life automobiles. In terms of incentives, the state will support technology research and development and equipment import of echelon and recycling enterprises within existing funding channels. In terms of technology research and development, the state supports the development of recycling technologies and equipment related to power batteries.

In February 2016, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued the "Standard Conditions for the Industry of the Comprehensive Utilization of Used Power Batteries of New Energy Vehicles" and the "Interim Measures for the Announcement and Administration of the Industrial Standard for the Comprehensive Utilization of Used Power Batteries of New Energy Vehicles" to clarify the responsibility bodies for the recovery of used batteries and strengthen industry management and recovery supervision.

In February 2016, the draft of the "Technical Policy for Prevention and Control of Waste Battery Pollution" was released. The highlights of the new policy related to lithium batteries are: 1) The scope of coverage of waste batteries includes emerging lithium batteries, solar cells and fuel cells, and the attitude towards battery recycling plants has changed from prudent conservative to advocacy and promotion; 2) It is clear that lithium-ion battery recycling enterprises must have a hazardous waste management license before they can operate, and related environmental protection enterprises will have more advantages in qualifications; 3) Encourage the development of reverse dismantling equipment such as lithium primary batteries, power batteries, energy storage batteries, diaphragm of lithium ion batteries, and new technologies such as metal products and electrode material recycling equipment.

In addition to encouraging support at the national policy level, many local governments in China are also actively exploring specific ways to implement the recycling and reuse of power lithium batteries:

Shanghai: In 2014, Shanghai issued the "Interim Measures for Encouraging the Purchase and Use of New Energy Vehicles in Shanghai", requiring car companies to recycle power batteries, and the government will give a reward of 1,000 yuan/set. The government will subsidize 1,000 yuan / set for recycling power batteries;

Guangzhou: In November 2014, the "Circular of the General Office of the Guangzhou Municipal People's Government on the Issuance of Provisional Measures for the Administration of the Promotion and Application of New Energy Vehicles in Guangzhou" proposed the establishment of a vehicle power battery recycling channel in the city and the recycling of power batteries in accordance with relevant requirements.

Beijing: On January 27, 2016, the Forum on the Future Development Trends of the Automobile Tangible Market was held in Beijing under the theme of "Cooperation, Innovation and Development". Xuxinchao, director of the Shuangxin Department of the Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission, said at the forum: Beijing has implemented the "3 No Policy" put forward by the central government on new energy vehicles that are not limited to line, unlimited purchase, and non-tax; At the same time, Beijing's power battery recycling problem can be effectively solved through the "three links." (1) Car companies are the first responsible body for power battery recovery. (2) Retired power cells can also be used step by step. (3) Technological innovations have enabled 99 per cent recycling of used batteries, which is environmentally sound.

Shenzhen: In 2015, Shenzhen issued the "Notice of the Shenzhen Municipal People's Government on the Publication and Publication of Certain Policies and Measures for the Promotion and Application of New Energy Vehicles in Shenzhen", which shows that it requires the formulation of a power battery recycling policy. Vehicle manufacturers are responsible for the mandatory recycling of new energy vehicle power batteries. In addition, the vehicle manufacturing company will draw power battery recovery and treatment funds according to the special plan of 20 yuan per kilowatt-hour, and the local government will provide subsidies of up to 50 % of the audited funds, and establish a sound recycling system for used power cells.

In September 2016, the Shenzhen Municipal Development and Reform Commission and the Municipal Financial Committee issued the "Shenzhen 2016 Financial Support Policy for the Promotion and Application of New Energy Vehicles". In the area of power cell recycling, the new regulations require new energy vehicle manufacturers to be responsible for recycling, and subsidies shall be granted to enterprises with the required amount of 50 per cent of the amount. Subsidies should be earmarked for power cell recycling.

Comparison of Business Models: Constructing a Producer Recycling System under Economic Incentives

From the experience of battery recycling in developed countries in Europe and the United States, it can be seen that when establishing a recycling system for used batteries, power battery manufacturers bear the main responsibility for battery recycling. When electric vehicles equipped with power batteries are sold together to consumers such as operators, group customers, or individual customers, consumers have the ownership of power batteries and are also obliged to pay for power batteries that are scrapped. The recycling network under this model is rebuilt by power cell manufacturers using the sales service network of electric car manufacturers, and electric car manufacturers have the responsibility to cooperate in the recycling of power cells used in their products.

The manufacturer has the most control in the entire life cycle of the product, occupies a variety of resources, and is responsible for the design structure of the product. It can be said that the manufacturer has all the information about the product and determines the degree of impact of the product on the environment.

The recycling process uses the sales network of electric car manufacturers to recycle used batteries in reverse logistics. Consumers return end-of-life batteries to nearby electric vehicle sales service outlets. According to the cooperation agreement between battery manufacturers and electric vehicle manufacturers, electric vehicle manufacturers are transferred to battery manufacturers at agreed prices for specialized recycling. Battery manufacturers can continue to use recovered metal materials.

In addition, scrapping companies need to sell used power batteries directly to power battery manufacturers when recycling used electric vehicles.

In the form of recycling, the implementation of the "old for new" system has prompted more consumers to return used batteries and ensure the recycling of power batteries. When consumers replace new batteries, old batteries can offset part of the price of new batteries. When recycling electric vehicles with power batteries, scrap car dismantling enterprises should give consumers a certain amount of cash compensation, and then sell used power batteries to power battery manufacturers.

The industry alliance recycling power cell model refers to the formation of power cell manufacturers, electric car manufacturers or battery rental companies in the industry, and jointly invest in the establishment of a specialized recycling organization responsible for the recovery of power cells. This approach can avoid the problems of insufficient quantities of recycled batteries, limited funding and low recycling channels due to the limited capacity of individual enterprises of battery manufacturers.

The main feature of this model is to set up a unified recycling organization in the industry, with strong influence, extensive coverage, and independent operation; And the recycling network is huge, and it is easy for consumers to return batteries. The proceeds from recycling are used for the construction and operation of recycling networks.

Third party recycling model: need to build a recycling network and related logistics system, responsible for recycling commissioned enterprises after-sale production of used power batteries, and then shipped back to the recycling center for professional recycling. After the final scrap of electric vehicles into the automotive dismantling enterprise, automotive dismantling enterprises can sell used power batteries to third parties.

The establishment of the recovery model requires a large amount of funds to be invested in the construction of recovery equipment, recovery networks and human resources; Cost is also one of the important factors. Under the system of producer responsibility extension, different power cell recycling models are suitable for different types of enterprises.

For large power battery manufacturers, their products are numerous, production and sales are large, and they have strong technical and economic strength to recycle batteries themselves; For small and medium-sized enterprises, the types of products, production and sales are relatively small, and their own recycling requires a large amount of investment, which will affect the development of the company's core business, so they can choose to cooperate with other organizations to recycle.

In comparison, the cost recovery economy of the industry alliance is the best, but because of the need for cooperation between companies in the industry, at present, the law and regulations are not very perfect, and the operability is relatively small. In terms of integrated cost, the cost of direct recovery model for power battery manufacturers is lower, while the cost of third-party recovery model is higher.

III. Resourcing Technology for Used Lithium-ion Batteries: Wet Recovery Technology

Overview of Lithium-ion Battery Recovery Technology

The resource technology of used lithium-ion batteries is to separate the valuable components of used lithium-ion batteries according to their respective physical and chemical properties. In general, the entire recovery process is divided into four parts:(1) pretreatment part; (2) Electrode material repair; (3) leaching of valuable metals; (4) Chemical purification.

In the recycling process, according to the classification of different extraction processes, the recycling technology of lithium ion batteries can be divided into three categories:(1) dry recovery technology; (2) Wet recovery technology; (3) Biotechnology.

Dry recovery mainly includes mechanical separation and high-temperature thermal solution(or high-temperature metallurgical method). The process of dry recovery is short, and the focus of recovery is not strong. It is the initial stage of metal separation and recovery. It mainly refers to the recovery method of materials or valuable metals without the use of solution and other media. It is mainly through the physical separation method and the high-temperature thermal solution, the rough screening classification of battery fragmentation, or the high temperature decomposition to remove organic matter for further The recovery of elements.

Wet recovery technology is relatively complex, but the recovery rate of each valuable metal is relatively high. It is currently the technology that mainly deals with used nickel-metal hydride batteries and lithium-ion batteries. Wet recovery technology uses a variety of acid and alkaline solutions as the transfer medium to transfer metal ions from electrode materials to leaching fluids, and then through ion exchange, precipitation, adsorption and other means. Metal ions are extracted from the solution in the form of salts, oxides, etc..

Biological recycling technology has the characteristics of low cost, low pollution, and reusable. It is an ideal direction for the development of lithium ion battery recycling technology in the future. Biological recovery technology mainly uses microbial leaching to convert useful components of the system into soluble compounds and selectively dissolve them to obtain a solution containing effective metals, achieve separation of target components from impurity components, and eventually recover lithium and other valuable metals. At present, the research on biological recovery technology is just beginning, after which it will gradually solve the problem of the cultivation of high-efficiency strains, the length of the cycle, and the control of leaching conditions.

From the order of the recovery process, the first step is the pre-treatment process. The purpose of the pre-treatment process is to initially separate and recover the valuable parts of the old lithium ion battery, and to efficiently and selectively enrich the high value-added parts such as electrode materials so as to facilitate the subsequent recovery process. The pretreatment process generally combines fragmentation, grinding, screening and physical separation. The main pre-treatment methods include:(1) predischarge; (2) mechanical separation; (3) Heat treatment; (4) lye solution; (5) Solvent dissolution; (6) Manual dismantling, etc..

Step 2: Material separation. The mixed electrode materials of positive and negative poles were obtained during the pretreatment stage. In order to separate and recover the valuable metals such as Co and Li, selective extraction of the mixed electrode materials was needed. The process of material separation can also be divided into:(1) Inorganic acid leaching according to the classification techniques of dry recovery, wet recovery and biological recovery; (2) Biological leaching; (3) Mechanical chemical leaching.

Step 3: Chemical purification. The purpose is to separate, purify and recycle the various high-value-added metals in the solution obtained by leaching. The leachate contains many elements such as Ni, Co, Mn, Fe, Li, Al, and Cu, among which Ni, Co, Mn, and Li are the main recovered metal elements. After selective precipitation of Al and Fe by adjusting the pH, the elements such as Ni, Co, Mn and Li in the leachate are processed and recovered next. Commonly used recovery methods include chemical precipitation, salt precipitation, ion exchange, extraction, and electrodeposition.

Technology Route and Trend of Power Battery Recovery in Domestic and Foreign Enterprises: Wet Process and High Temperature Pyrolysis as Mainstream

Comparing the recycling process of used power batteries of foreign mainstream battery recycling companies, it can be found that the recycling process of mainstream lithium battery is mainly based on wet process and high temperature pyrolysis, and a large part of it has already been put into the industrial production stage.

Lithium power recycling is economical, battery manufacturers self-dismantling or third-party dismantling mode is the current mainstream

Since 2015, cobalt, nickel and lithium/lithium hydroxide prices will receive a modest boost as the new energy car industry erupts and battery materials change in the direction of high-nickel ternary materials. This makes the recycling of used lithium-ion batteries more economical.

The average annual mileage of private cars in China is about 16,000 kilometers. It is conservatively estimated that under the conditions of private cars, the service life of power batteries of pure electric/plug-in cars is about 4 to 6 years; For buses, taxis and other models, due to their long average mileage and frequent charging, the life of their power batteries is 2 to 3 years.

The metal content of different types of power batteries is different. According to our prediction of the ratio of electric vehicles and the lithium capacity of bicycles, the waste reporting of future power lithium-ion batteries in China is predicted. It is expected that by 2018, the number of new power cells that will be scrapped will reach 11.8 GWh, corresponding to recoverable metals: 18,000 tons of nickel, 0.3 tons of cobalt, 11,200 tons of manganese, and 0.34 million tons of lithium. It is estimated that by 2023, the number of new power cells that will be scrapped will reach 10.1 Gw, and the corresponding recyclable metals are: 119,000 tons of nickel, 23,000 tons of cobalt, 71,000 tons of manganese, and 20,000 tons of lithium.

We estimate that prices of metals other than cobalt will fall in different degrees in the coming years, and calculate that by 2018, the market size of recoverable valuable metals will reach 1.4 billion yuan in nickel, 8.7 billion yuan in cobalt, and 2.6 billion yuan in lithium. By 2023, the market value of recoverable valuable metals could reach 8.4 billion yuan in nickel, 7.3 billion yuan in cobalt, 850 million yuan in manganese and 14.6 billion yuan in lithium.

By establishing an economic evaluation model, the following mathematical models can be used to indicate the benefits of input costs and recovery materials in the power cell recovery process:

Bpro = Ctoal-Cdeposiation-Cus-Ctax

Bpro indicates the profit of recycling used power cells; Ctotal represents the total return on recycling of used power cells; Cdeposation represents the depreciation cost of used power battery equipment; Cuse indicates the cost of using the used power cell recovery process; Ctax represents the tax revenue of used power battery recycling companies.

The cost of using used power battery recovery and recycling process mainly includes the following items(1) raw material cost; (2) Cost of supporting materials; (3) Fuel power cost; (4) equipment maintenance costs; (5) Environmental treatment costs; (6) Labor costs.

From the perspective of gross profit rate, feasibility and sustainability, we believe that the model of closed-loop recycling by battery manufacturers and the model of purchasing used batteries from battery manufacturers by third-party professional dismantling institutions are the mainstream dynamic lithium power recovery models. And in the case of comprehensive recovery of lithium electricity, it has a good economy.

Assumptions:(1) Current metal prices($215,000 per ton of cobalt, $77,700 per ton of nickel, $11,000 per ton of manganese, $700,000 per ton of lithium, $12,600 per ton of aluminium, $0.2 million per ton of iron) and without taking into account other recovery gains; (2) Consider the use of various types of power cells(70 % of lithium iron phosphate, 7 % of lithium manganese acid, and 23 % of three yuan) for the comprehensive recovery of lithium ion batteries; (3) The same costs other than raw materials

Conclusion and analysis: Third party professional organizations acquire used lithium batteries from small workshops and have the highest gross profit rate for dismantling and processing, reaching 60 %; The second is the form of recycling processing in the industry alliance, with a gross profit rate of 45 %. However, among these two methods, the former(third party: purchased in small workshops) has safety and environmental protection issues, and at present, small workshops have not yet realized the huge value of the lithium power recycling industry, and the acquisition price is low, so this method is not sustainable; The latter(industry alliances), which are currently less feasible owing to the imperfect regulatory and legal environment, will be one of the trends in the future. :: The other three approaches are more feasible and sustainable, but the model gross margins of direct recycling by battery manufacturers and purchase of used batteries from manufacturers by third-party professional dismantling agencies are higher, so we believe that these two approaches will constitute the current mainstream recycling model.

The recovery value of ternary battery material is higher than that of other power cells. For example, considering the recovery of ternary power cells alone, The recycling model for battery manufacturers and the third-party dismantling model for purchasing used batteries from battery manufacturers have high investment value(in 2016, the gross profit rate was estimated to reach 55 % and 48 %, respectively)

We believe that the power lithium power recycling industry will gradually achieve standardization and scale in the next five years. The recycling model of the industry alliance is expected to be formed in the middle and late stages of industrial development. Due to its scale effect, it will have a higher gross profit margin. In addition, the original producer recycling model and the third-party dismantling model of purchasing used batteries from producers still have a strong economy.

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