With the explosive growth of the new energy vehicle industry, the demand for recycling of ternary lithium batteries has surged. How to efficiently extract high-value metals such as lithium, nickel, and cobalt has become the focus of the industry. Centrifugal extractor has become the core equipment of ternary lithium extraction processes due to their advantages of efficient mass transfer, precise separation, environmental protection, and energy saving.
Technical Advantages of Centrifugal Extractor
- Efficient mass transfer and rapid phase separation: Traditional extraction column relies on gravity stratification, with a single-stage residence time of up to 10-30 minutes, and the lithium recovery rate is easily lower than 85% due to emulsification. The centrifugal extractor generates a strong centrifugal field through high-speed rotation, reducing the droplet diameter to 50-100μm, increasing the mass transfer efficiency by 3-5 times, shortening the phase separation time to less than 10 seconds, and significantly improving the lithium ion transfer efficiency.
- Adapt to complex leachate environment: The leachate of ternary lithium batteries contains high concentrations of impurity ions such as nickel, cobalt, and manganese, and traditional processes are easily interfered with. The centrifugal extractor can achieve efficient separation of lithium and impurity metals by optimizing the ratio of extractants and process sequence. For example, the extraction of nickel and cobalt must be completed first to avoid competitive interference, and the multi-stage series design of the centrifugal extractor can accurately control the extraction conditions at each stage to ensure the purity of the target metal.
- Corrosion resistance and long-cycle operation: In view of the strong corrosiveness of waste battery solution, the centrifugal extractor is made of highly corrosion-resistant materials such as titanium alloy and Hastelloy. The equipment life is more than twice that of traditional equipment, reducing maintenance costs.
Ternary Lithium Extraction Process
- In the pretreatment and leaching stages, waste ternary lithium batteries need to be disassembled, crushed, screened and other pretreatments to obtain lithium-containing positive electrode materials. Through acid leaching or alkaline leaching treatment, metal elements such as lithium, nickel, and cobalt are dissolved in the solution to form a mixed leachate.
- Centrifugal extraction and separation stage
Mixed mass transfer: The centrifugal extractor fully mixes the leachate and the extractant under high-speed shear force to achieve rapid transfer of lithium ions to the organic phase.
Phase separation and purification: Rapid phase separation through centrifugal force, the lithium-rich organic phase enters the stripping process, and the impurity metals (such as nickel and cobalt) are gradually separated through multi-stage extraction.
Intelligent control: Modern equipment is equipped with sensors and automated control systems to monitor parameters such as pH value and flow rate in real time, optimize extraction efficiency and reduce manual intervention. - Stripping and metal recovery: the lithium-rich organic phase is stripped to obtain a high-purity lithium salt solution, which can be directly used to prepare battery-grade lithium carbonate or lithium hydroxide, while metals such as nickel and cobalt can be recovered by electrolysis or precipitation.
Application of Centrifugal Extractor in Ternary Lithium Extraction
In a salt lake lithium extraction project, the centrifugal extractor was used to replace the traditional process. By optimizing the extraction process, the daily lithium output increased by 30%, energy consumption decreased by 25%, and the comprehensive production cost decreased by 18%.
In the recycling of used ternary lithium batteries, centrifugal extractor can achieve the simultaneous extraction of nickel, cobalt and manganese. Under the continuous extraction production mode, the metal recovery rates reached 98% (nickel), 96% (cobalt) and 92% (manganese), and the wastewater discharge was reduced by 40%.
Centrifugal extractor, with their high efficiency, environmental protection and durability, has become irreplaceable core equipment in the ternary lithium extraction process. With technological progress and industrial upgrading, their application scenarios will be further expanded, driving the lithium battery recycling industry towards green and intelligent development. Through process innovation and equipment optimization, centrifugal extractor will plays a more important role in the global lithium resource strategy.
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