AMY’s demonstration plant equipment ready for commissioning
American Manganese Inc. (AMY), a pioneer in advanced lithium-ion battery cathode recycling-upcycling, and its independent R&D contractor Kemetco Research Inc. (Kemetco) report that the equipment in the Company’s demonstration plant is ready for commissioning.
The plant is designed to demonstrate the RecycLiCo process in continuous operating conditions that will enable American Manganese to run the complete process and provide input for commercial operation.
“The demonstration plant project is a pivotal and defining moment that will demonstrate the RecycLiCo process’ ability to operate at real-world operating conditions and provide actionable feedback towards the design and development of commercial lithium-ion battery recycling-upcycling plants,” said Larry Reaugh, President and CEO of American Manganese. “We will be working with third parties to validate the demonstration plant’s operating efficiencies and qualify large quantities of recycled-upcycled material to aid in the progression of strategic partnerships.”
The Company has received cathode scrap feedstock, with an NMC (lithium-nickel-manganese-cobalt oxide) chemistry, which is used in the latest generation electric vehicles. Once commissioned, the initial testing and operation of the demonstration plant system will commence with mechanical shredding of the cathode scrap and characterization of the feed material for hydrometallurgical processing.
The hydrometallurgical processing is scheduled to run continuously while simultaneously measuring data points to monitor and collect process efficiencies. The demonstration plant will include the following core unit operations at the planned cathode scrap processing capacity of 500 kg/day:
- Shredding of cathode scrap materials and separating the active cathode material from aluminum foils
- Leaching active cathode material (lithium, nickel, manganese, and cobalt) and removing impurities
- Producing a high purity mixed nickel-manganese-cobalt hydroxide and lithium carbonate
After the initial demonstration plant program, AMY intends to continue additional operation testing of unit operations to produce upcycled materials for interested third parties. These unit operations will include the production of precursor cathode active material, lithium hydroxide, and lithium sulfate products to the desired specifications for lithium-ion battery re-manufacturing.
The global push for sustainability, rising fossil fuel prices, and supply chain instability have significantly influenced the demand and supply trends for battery metals such as lithium, nickel, cobalt, and manganese. AMY continues to advance commercialization of its intellectual property to provide a sustainable supply of these critical materials.
