In February 2019, the U.S. Department of Energy launched the ReCell Center, an advanced battery recycling R&D center, to solve the problem of how to recycle lithium-ion batteries in the United States. ReCell is a consortium consisting of Argonne National Laboratory, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the University of California San Diego, Michigan Technological University, and Worcester Polytechnic Institute.
Since the launch, ReCell’s scientists have made pivotal discoveries in direct cathode recycling, recovering other materials, design for recycling, and modeling and analysis. Waste360 recently spoke with ReCell Center director Jeff Spangenberger about his take on circularity, the economics of lithium-ion recycling, and end-of-life vehicles, among other topics.
