Source: DeepTech
He is a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Sciences, the Canadian Academy of Engineering, the winner of Canada's highest national science and technology award, and Canada's national chief scientist. At the age of 44, he became the youngest academician of the Canadian Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Previously, he served as the director of the Clean Energy Advanced Materials Laboratory of the University of Waterloo, Canada, and the director of the Electrochemical Energy Center of the University of Waterloo, Canada. His name was Chen Zhongwei.
In 2023, Chen Zhongwei returned home full time to join Dalian Institute of Physical Chemistry. Not long ago, he and his domestic team designed a one-step battery recycling process.
Figure | Chen Zhongwei (Source: Data Map) Layout the blue ocean market in advance
In fact, the research team carried out this research based on a grand new energy background. In 2023, 14.2 million new pure electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles will be delivered globally.
The sales volume of electric vehicles in the United States and Canada increased by 46% year on year, while that in China increased by 36% year on year.
In sharp contrast to the large production and sales of electric vehicles, the standardized recovery rate of retired power batteries is low, which cannot meet the upcoming large-scale and centralized retirement tide of new energy vehicles. Therefore, the problem of power battery recovery needs to be solved urgently.
Power battery recycling mainly includes cascade utilization and recycling.
In the cascade utilization, if the battery capacity is between 20% and 80%, it can be used in energy storage power stations, two wheeled electric vehicles, solar energy storage systems, communication base stations, etc.
In recycling, if the battery capacity is less than 20%, it will be scrapped and disassembled to extract the high-value metal elements.
At present, the commercial recycling mainly adopts the complex three-step process of extraction precipitation calcination, and uses strong acid as the extractant, which makes it difficult to recycle the waste liquid.
Over the years, the team has focused on the related issues in the field of power batteries, and carried out research on the interdisciplinary integration of electrochemistry, energy, materials, artificial intelligence and other disciplines with the starting point of new battery technology requirements for low cost, high capacity, high safety, and high convenience.
The research team learned that in 2023 alone, the total amount of retired power batteries in China will exceed 580000 tons. It is estimated that by 2030, the scale of China's power battery recycling market will exceed 100 billion yuan.
Such a huge market scale has prompted them to carry out continuous research on the sustainable recycling of power batteries, so that they can layout this blue ocean market in advance.
In recent decades, with the progress of technology and the reduction of cost, lithium-ion batteries now occupy a leading position in consumer electronics, transportation electrification and other industries.
However, both of these drivers show signs of slowing down.
In the field of lithium free, sodium ion battery is considered as one of the most promising technologies.
According to the data released by Ningde Times, its first generation sodium ion battery has an energy density of 60Wh/kg, which can store more than 80% of the electricity after 15 minutes of charging at room temperature, and has a discharge retention rate of more than 90% in a low temperature environment of minus 20 degrees Celsius.
(Source: Nature Sustainability ） Realize the transformation to low-cost sodium ion battery
Earlier, Chen Zhongwei's team found in the research of sodium ion batteries and the next generation of high-performance sodium based cathode materials that the transition metal elements needed for sodium based cathode are just in line with the high-value transition metal elements rich in retired power batteries.
Therefore, they envisage to realize the transformation to low-cost sodium ion batteries by designing recycling schemes and using battery recycling methods.
At the beginning, the research group decided on "four high" ” Research objectives: high efficiency, high security, low cost and high performance.
After in-depth understanding of the battery recovery process, they modified the full mixed anaerobic reactor used in the preparation of lithium battery cathode, and then created a one-step cathode regeneration process.
Based on the doping process designed by the team on the sodium based cathode in the early stage, after nearly a hundred formula adjustments, a variety of sodium based cathode materials were finally prepared using retired cathode materials.
The structure of these materials presents a uniform cube shape, and all have high performance.
In order to further verify the feasibility of sodium based cathode materials, the research group carried out pilot scale up experiments and pilot scale up experiments. The experimental results show that these sodium based cathode materials can meet the requirements of commercial scale up.
(Source: Nature Sustainability ） In order to compare the one-step battery recovery process with the traditional three-step battery recovery process, the team has established a set of life cycle analysis models and economic and technical analysis models.
Through this, the research team carried out simulation analysis on the whole life cycle of power battery technology and battery recovery technology from raw material metallurgy to battery scrap recovery, and discussed the feasibility and profit margin of related battery technology.
It is reported that:
The whole life cycle analysis involves all links from raw material mining, production, use and waste disposal.
These include the impact of raw material extraction on the environment, energy consumption and emissions in the production process, the use stage of batteries, and the disposal method of waste batteries.
Economic and technical analysis involves the assessment of the production cost, efficiency, sustainability and market prospects of lithium batteries.
The input and output in the production process, as well as the performance, life and cost-effectiveness of the battery will be considered.
Comprehensive consideration of full life cycle analysis and economic and technical analysis can better evaluate the feasibility and sustainability of lithium battery as an energy storage solution, as well as its role and development trend in the energy system.
It is understood that, Recycling renewable power batteries can not only reduce the cost of manufacturing new batteries, but also significantly reduce the carbon emissions in the battery life cycle, thus promoting green and low-carbon development.
In the future, the team will continue to focus on the sustainable recycling of retired power batteries, and work from three aspects: battery design, battery fragmentation and separation, and cathode material regeneration.
In terms of battery design, it is necessary to consider the convenience of recycling and disassembly at the design stage.
For this:
First, the modular design can be adopted to make the battery module easier to separate and replace.
Secondly, environment-friendly and renewable materials can be used to reduce the use of harmful substances and help reduce environmental pollution in the recycling process.
Thirdly, the type and proportion of battery materials shall be marked for classification and treatment in the recycling process.
Finally, the development of reusable battery packaging and shell can also improve the overall recycling efficiency.
For the crushing and separation of retired power batteries, the research team plans to first break the batteries into smaller particles through mechanical crushing, and then use physical and chemical methods for separation. For example, magnetic suspension technology and suspension technology can effectively remove impurities and improve the purity of cathode materials.
In terms of sustainable regeneration of cathode materials, the team will further screen different environmentally friendly extractants and cathode preparation methods to be used in the regeneration process of cathode materials and help improve the quality and efficiency of recycled materials.
It is expected that the combination of these measures can not only improve the recycling efficiency, but also promote the sustainable development of the battery recycling industry.
(Source: Nature Sustainability ） Combining artificial intelligence technology, the first generation battery digital brain PBSRD Digit 1.0 was launched
At the same time, the research group has also been paying attention to the application of artificial intelligence in the field of materials.
Recently, they launched the first generation battery digital brain PBSRD Digit 1.0. The system can realize early warning, state estimation, life prediction and other functions of battery failure by combining electrochemical model and artificial intelligence technology.
It is reported that the core of the first generation of battery digital brain is to build "electrochemical model+artificial intelligence" ” The model framework of.
This model framework can not only improve the accuracy of the battery management system and ensure the safety and reliability of the battery, but also continuously optimize its own performance and achieve self-improvement through machine learning.
Using the team's accumulation in the electrochemical field, combined with the data processing and pattern recognition capabilities of artificial intelligence, they developed an intelligent algorithm, which can monitor the battery status in real time, predict the battery health status and remaining service life.
In addition, they have also established a battery performance cloud database. By collecting and analyzing battery data from different scenes and different working conditions, they use these data to train and verify the algorithm model to ensure the high reliability and adaptability of the battery digital brain.
It is also reported that Academician Chen Zhongwei joined Dalian Institute of Physical Chemistry in 2023, and then established the Academic Committee of the National Key Laboratory of Energy Catalytic Conversion and the Research Department of Power Battery and Systems.
At present, Chen Zhongwei has established a scientific research team and an engineer team of more than 100 people.
Including:
The scientific research team produces new scientific and technological achievements through experiments and research; The engineer team is responsible for transforming these achievements into feasible products or solutions.
Through this, Chen Zhongwei hopes to accelerate the commercialization process of scientific research achievements and realize the seamless connection from scientific discovery to market landing.
reference material: 1.Yang, T., Luo, D., Zhang, X. et al. Sustainable regeneration of spent cathodes for lithium-ion and post-lithium-ion batteries. Nat Sustain (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-024-01351-5
Typesetting: Liu Yakun
