US 12,334,522 B2
Method, apparatus, and system for lithium ion battery recycling
Minjae Oh, Washington, DC (US)
Assigned to BLUE WHALE MATERIALS LLC, Washington, DC (US)
Appl. No. 17/599,318
Filed by Blue Whale Materials LLC, Washington, DC (US)
PCT Filed Aug. 17, 2021, PCT No. PCT/US2021/046329
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Sep. 28, 2021,
PCT Pub. No. WO2022/040200, PCT Pub. Date Feb. 24, 2022.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/066,629, filed on Aug. 17, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2023/0231214 A1, Jul. 20, 2023
Int. Cl. H01M 10/54 (2006.01); B03B 9/06 (2006.01); B03C 1/00 (2006.01); B22F 1/00 (2022.01); B22F 1/12 (2022.01); B22F 9/04 (2006.01); C22B 7/00 (2006.01)
CPC H01M 10/54 (2013.01) [B03B 9/06 (2013.01); B03C 1/00 (2013.01); B22F 1/09 (2022.01); B22F 1/12 (2022.01); B22F 9/04 (2013.01); C22B 7/005 (2013.01); B03B 2009/066 (2013.01); B03C 2201/20 (2013.01); B22F 2301/054 (2013.01); B22F 2301/15 (2013.01); B22F 2302/40 (2013.01)] 8 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A battery processing method comprising:
hole punching electric vehicle (EV) batteries, wherein the hole punching affects a speed of electrolyte evaporation in the EV batteries and a processing time of the battery processing method;
depositing the hole-punched EV batteries in water for fire or fume mitigation;
discharging the hole-punched EV batteries by heat in a discharging kiln;
cooling the discharged and hole-punched EV batteries;
disassembling the cooled, discharged, and hole-punched EV batteries to separate into modules or cells;
shredding the modules or cells into mixed metal pieces;
magnetically separating iron (Fe) from the mixed metal pieces; and
pulverizing the mixed metal pieces into a mixed metal powder.