The present disclosure concerns the production of precursor compounds for lithium battery cathodes.

Batteries or their scrap are smelted in reducing conditions, thereby forming an alloy suitable for further hydrometallurgical refining, and a slag. The alloy is leached in acidic conditions, producing a Ni- and Co-bearing solution, which is refined.

The refining steps are greatly simplified as most elements susceptible to interfere with the refining steps concentrate in the slag. Metals such as Co, Ni and Mn are then precipitated from the solution, forming a suitable starting product for the synthesis of new battery precursor compounds.

A system for the recovery of titanium, titanium alloys, zirconium and zirconium alloys is disclosed. The system is fed with a mixture of chips including titanium chips, titanium alloy chips, zirconium chips and zirconium alloy chips, ferromagnetic chips and electrically conductive non-ferromagnetic chips. The system has at least one magnetic separator, a drying device and an Eddy current separator.

Embodiments of the invention are directed to a rotor for a molten metal pump and a molten metal pump including the rotor. The rotor has a main body and a top comprised of a material that is at least twice as hard as the main body. The top, among other things, may form a first portion of each rotor blade wherein the first portion directs molten metal into a pump chamber or other structure in which the rotor is mounted.

A molten metal rotor receives and retains an end of a molten metal rotor shaft. The rotor shaft has one or more projections at the end received in the rotor. The rotor has an inner cavity, a top surface with an opening leading to the inner cavity, and at least one abutment. The opening includes one or more portions for allowing each projection to pass through the opening and into the inner cavity. The rotor and/or shaft are then rotated so at least one of the outwardly-extending projections is under the top surface of the rotor and is against an abutment. A molten metal pump, rotary degasser scrap melter or other device used in molten metal may utilize a rotor/shaft combination as disclosed herein.

A method for the extraction of lithium from an assembly of at least one cell of an electric battery including solid metallic lithium, such as a Lithium-Metal-Polymer battery, the method having an extraction phase including the following steps: positioning the assembly in an orientation in which a first edge of the assembly from which extend(s) one or more negative electrode or electrodes is located below a second edge of the assembly, opposite the first edge, and from which extend(s) one or more positive electrode or electrodes; and heating the assembly to a treatment temperature greater than or equal to the melting temperature of the solid metallic lithium. An installation implementing such a method is also provided.

Method for producing thermally processed material (50), the method comprising providing material (35) to be thermally processed, providing carbon-containing scrap material (20) from an electrolysis cell (10) for the production of primary aluminium (15), introducing the material (35) to be thermally processed into a furnace (40), processing the carbon-containing scrap material (20) to produce a scrap fuel (55), and thermally processing the material (35) to be thermally processed in the furnace (40) using energy generated by burning the scrap fuel (55) such as to produce thermally processed material (50).

A method for obtaining a brass billet with reduced lead content involves machining a finished or semi-finished product made of traditional brass by chip removal to obtain traditional brass chips, performing a fragmentation treatment on the traditional brass chips to obtain traditional brass fragments, performing a lead removal treatment on the traditional brass fragments to obtain brass fragments with reduced lead content, melting in a furnace a charge comprising the brass fragments with reduced lead content, and obtaining a billet by direct or inverted extrusion of the molten product.

A method of charging a pre-packaged charge in a metallurgical or refining furnace includes providing a disposable metal container having at least one attachment member and forming a pre-packaged charge by loading scrap material into the metal container. The method also includes releasably coupling the at least one attachment member of the container to a lifting device, and then de-coupling the pre-packaged charge from the lifting device so that the combination of the scrap material and the disposable metal container are charged in the furnace.

To recover materials forming a fuel cell stack by an easy method.

Provided is a method of recovering, from a fuel cell stack having a stack structure including a plurality of fuel cells stacked, materials forming the fuel cell stack, the fuel cells each including a membrane electrode assembly and two separators holding the membrane electrode assembly therebetween, the separators each being provided with a gas flow channel configured to supply a raw material gas to the membrane electrode assembly, the method including: a first step of supplying a solvent or a solvent and a reagent to the fuel cell stack through the gas flow channel, collecting the solvent which contains a material, and recovering the material from the collected solvent; and a second step of subjecting the fuel cell stack after the first step to a heat treatment to obtain a molten liquid or gas and recovering a material from the molten liquid or gas, the materials recovered including materials forming the membrane electrode assembly and the separators.

A method of charging a pre-packaged charge in a metallurgical or refining furnace includes providing a disposable metal container having at least one attachment member and forming a pre-packaged charge by loading scrap material into the metal container. The method also includes releasably coupling the at least one attachment member of the container to a lifting device, and then de-coupling the pre-packaged charge from the lifting device so that the combination of the scrap material and the disposable metal container are charged in the furnace.