KR-102962202-B1 - Rotary valve for waste lithium battery calciner

Abstract

The present invention comprises: a low-temperature calciner that receives crushed waste lithium-ion battery material, vaporizes the electrolyte, and discharges it through a low-temperature gas outlet on one side, and is equipped with a low-temperature screw conveyor that rotates internally for quantitative transport of the crushed material; a high-temperature calciner that is connected to the low-temperature calciner and receives the crushed material, which maintains an internal temperature of 350 to 450°C to burn the residual separator and binder and discharges it through a high-temperature gas outlet on one side, and is equipped with a high-temperature screw conveyor that rotates internally for quantitative transport of the crushed material; and a quantitative transport valve installed at an inlet for inputting the crushed material of the low-temperature calciner, a connecting part connecting the low-temperature calciner and the high-temperature calciner, and an outlet side for discharging the crushed material of the high-temperature calciner, respectively, to transport the crushed material. The present invention, with this configuration, is installed in a low-temperature calcination chamber that volatilizes and removes the electrolyte mixed in the crushed waste lithium-ion battery and in a high-temperature calcination chamber that burns and removes impurities such as separators and binders, thereby enabling quantitative supply and discharge of waste. In particular, it effectively prevents heat from moving through the gap between the inner wall surfaces of the case space, thus preventing thermal effects in advance, and thus is expected to have useful effects that allow for economical operation and increased freedom of design.

Inventors

• 최정우

Assignees

• 주식회사 이브이씨씨

Dates

Publication Date

20260511

Application Date

20240426

Claims (4)

1. A waste lithium-ion battery calcination device comprising: a low-temperature calcination unit that receives crushed waste lithium-ion batteries, vaporizes the electrolyte, and discharges it through a low-temperature gas outlet on one side, and is equipped with a low-temperature screw conveyor that rotates internally for quantitative transfer of the crushed materials; a high-temperature calcination unit connected to the low-temperature calcination unit, which receives the crushed materials, maintains an internal temperature of 350~450℃, burns residual separator and binder, and discharges them through a high-temperature gas outlet on one side, and is equipped with a high-temperature screw conveyor that rotates internally for quantitative transfer of the crushed materials; and quantitative transfer valves installed at an inlet for inputting the crushed materials of the low-temperature calcination unit, a connecting part connecting the low-temperature calcination unit and the high-temperature calcination unit, and an outlet side for discharging the crushed materials of the high-temperature calcination unit, respectively, for transferring the crushed materials, wherein The above-described metering transfer valve comprises: a case having a cylindrical space formed inside, with a suction port on one side and a discharge port on the other side; a rotating shaft installed in the space that receives driving force from a driving source and rotates; a plurality of main blades made of metal that are radially arranged around the rotating shaft and whose ends have a gap with the inner wall surface of the case; a rotor comprising a contact blade, one end of which is fixedly installed on the main blade and the other end of which elastically contacts the inner wall surface of the case; and a driving unit comprising a driving motor installed on one side of the outside of the case to receive power and generate driving force, a driving gear provided on the output shaft of the driving motor, a driven gear connected to the rotating shaft of the rotor, and a power transmission belt connecting the driving gear and the driven gear. A waste lithium-ion battery firing apparatus characterized in that the above-mentioned contact blade is molded from a fluororubber material having heat resistance and elasticity, is fixed to the main blade with a screw member together with a bracket made of a metal plate, and its end portion is extended to contact the inner wall surface of the case and is bent gently in the opposite direction of rotation of the rotor to be in close contact, thereby blocking heat leakage inside the low-temperature firing apparatus and the high-temperature firing apparatus and preventing foreign substances contained in the crushed material from getting stuck.
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4. In claim 1, the metering transfer valve is, A first quantitative transfer valve installed at the inlet side where crushed material is fed into the above-mentioned low-temperature calcination furnace; A second quantitative transfer valve installed at the connection point connecting the above-mentioned low-temperature firing chamber and high-temperature firing chamber; A waste lithium-ion battery calcination device characterized by being composed of a third quantitative transfer valve installed at the outlet side where waste is discharged from the above-mentioned high-temperature calcination device.

Description

Rotary valve for waste lithium battery calciner The present invention relates to a waste lithium-ion battery calcination device, and more specifically, to a lithium-ion battery separator removal device that ensures quantitative transfer of crushed material input during calcination for removing impurities such as residual separators and binders, including electrolytes contained in the crushed material of waste lithium-ion batteries, in the process of recovering black powder, a rare metal, from waste lithium-ion batteries, and in particular, blocks the gap between the inside of the case and the blade during the transfer process to suppress the movement of heat and prevent foreign substances such as particles from getting stuck, thereby increasing the reliability of operation. In general, lithium-ion batteries (LiBs) are a type of secondary battery in which ions move from the negative electrode to the positive electrode during the discharge process. As a rechargeable and reusable battery, utilizing its high energy density, its application fields are increasingly expanding to include not only various industrial products and home appliances but also electric vehicles, mobility transportation equipment, and the aviation industry. In particular, the demand for lithium-ion batteries (LiBs) is expected to increase significantly in various related fields and industries in the future, driven by the hundreds of percent growth in the adoption of mobility devices such as electric vehicles (EVs), electric bicycles, and electric scooters over the past few years. This large-scale transition is accelerating, fueled by rapid technological innovation, growing interest in the environment and energy, favorable government policies, and increasing demand in the renewable energy sector; consequently, the demand for lithium-ion batteries may exceed the supply of battery-grade components such as lithium (Li), cobalt (Co), and nickel (Ni). Currently, the supply chains of these major metals entail various risks, including political, security, and business risks associated with geographical concentration. Therefore, securing raw material suppliers is crucial for the sustained growth of industrial markets, such as the rapidly expanding electric vehicle sector, as well as the shipbuilding and aviation industries. Lithium-ion batteries are broadly classified into three parts: the cathode, the anode, and the electrolyte. Depending on the cathode active material, they are further categorized into lithium nickel-cobalt-manganese oxide (NCM), lithium nickel-cobalt-aluminum oxide (NCA), lithium cobalt oxide (LCO), lithium manganese oxide (LMO), and lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries. Among these, the primarily used NCM batteries utilize a ternary alloy of nickel (Ni), cobalt (Co), and manganese (Mn); NCA batteries utilize a ternary alloy of nickel (Ni), cobalt (Co), and aluminum (Al); and LCO batteries utilize lithium (Li) and cobalt (Co) oxides as the cathode materials. Meanwhile, lithium-ion batteries are capable of repeated charging and discharging, but their lifespan is approximately 2 years, and electric vehicle cells are consumables with a lifespan of about 10 years. Since the risk associated with recycling is high when an external impact is applied during use or when any one of the cells in a battery pack made up of multiple cells is damaged, the amount of waste is also on the rise. Since these lithium-ion batteries contain large amounts of hazardous substances, including heavy metals, that can cause environmental pollution when discarded, landfilling or incineration is not feasible. Therefore, recycling them can prevent environmental pollution and promote the efficient use of resources by enhancing economic viability through the reuse of useful components made of rare metals. In particular, regarding the recycling of spent lithium-ion batteries, a key aspect is the recovery of various economically valuable metals constituting the lithium battery. To achieve this, various technologies are being proposed to recover rare metals, referred to as "black powder" or "black mass," which consists of a mixed powder of anode and cathode from the current collector. Technology for recycling such spent lithium-ion batteries involves disassembling battery cells from battery packs and subjecting them to crushing and/or pulverizing processes to separate, select, and extract black mass containing battery active materials made of rare metals such as cobalt, lithium, and nickel, as well as negative/anode active materials mixed with positive/cathode active materials and electrolyte components. As a method for separating such black powder, since black powder contains a mixture of carbon, which is the main material of the cathode, and oxides containing lithium, which is the anode material, carbon can be removed from the black powder using an incineration process or a flotation method. However, when carbon is removed from black powder through an incineratio