New Science-Based Concepts for Enhancing Efficiency in Battery Recycling
A special issue of Metals (ISSN 2075-4701). This special issue belongs to the section "Extractive Metallurgy".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2025 | Viewed by 8
Special Issue Editors
Interests: lithium-ion battery recycling; bio-hydrometallurgy; impurity management; process technology; critical materials
Interests: primary metallurgy and recycling of nonferrous metals; pyro- and hydrometallurgy of nonferrous metals; material science of nonferrous metals
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The rapid development of e-mobility and the increasing global reliance on battery technology has ushered in a transformative era in energy storage and use. As the demand for high-performance batteries increases, driven by the widespread adoption of electric vehicles and the expansion of renewable energy storage, the urgency to develop sustainable and efficient recycling technologies grows accordingly. The strain on raw material supply chains, coupled with the environmental impact of battery waste, underlines the critical need to improve our recycling capabilities.
This third edition of our Special Issue, "New Science-Based Concepts for Enhancing Efficiency in Battery Recycling", aims to address these compelling challenges by highlighting the latest scientific breakthroughs and innovative approaches in the field of battery recycling. As the battery market continues to diversify rapidly, encompassing a wide range of chemistries—from traditional lead–acid and nickel–metal-hydride systems to the latest lithium-ion variants and emerging solid-state technologies—there is an increasing need to adapt and refine recycling processes to keep pace with these developments.
In this Special Issue, we welcome contributions that address novel processes and underlying mechanisms that are critical to improving battery recycling. Key areas of interest include automated disassembly and sensor-based sorting, advanced shredding and classification techniques, thermal conditioning, and innovations in hydro- and pyrometallurgical processing. We will not focus on consumer behaviour, collection, legal and regulation issues, or market development. We are also particularly interested in research into the safety aspects of recycling processes, post-mortem analysis of cell chemistry, and optimisation models to improve overall recycling efficiency.
As we move towards a circular economy, the focus on minimising waste streams and maximising the reuse and recycling of critical materials such as lithium is becoming increasingly important. This Special Issue aims to explore strategies that optimise the interfaces between mechanical, thermal, and metallurgical treatments, ultimately contributing to a more sustainable future for battery technology.
This Special Issue follows the 2020 issue and 2023 issue, which can be found under the following links:
2020 issue: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/metals/special_issues/battery_recycling
2023 issue: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/metals/special_issues/battery_recycling_2022
Dr. Eva Gerold
Prof. Dr. Helmut Antrekowitsch
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Metals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- battery recycling
- resource efficiency
- circular economy
- recovery
- critical metals
- waste minimization
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