Process for the separation of Li from oxides of one or more of Co and Ni contained in a feed, comprising the steps of: contacting, in aqueous medium, the feed with a quantity of sulfidizing agent, sufficient to convert a major part of the Co and/or Ni to sulfides, and a quantity of mineral acid sufficient to reach a pH of 1 to 5, thereby forming an aqueous slurry containing solid Co and/or Ni sulfides, and a solution containing Li; and, separating the solids from the solution, thereby obtaining solids containing Co and/or Ni sulfides, and a solution containing at least 70% of the Li. This process allows to convert Co and Ni to solid sulfides and at the same time to efficiently separate them from soluble compounds such as Li, Mn and other impurities.

Process for the separation of Li from oxides of one or more of Co and Ni contained in a feed, comprising the steps of: contacting, in aqueous medium, the feed with a quantity of sulfidizing agent, sufficient to convert a major part of the Co and/or Ni to sulfides, and a quantity of mineral acid sufficient to reach a pH of 1 to 5, thereby forming an aqueous slurry containing solid Co and/or Ni sulfides, and a solution containing Li; and, separating the solids from the solution, thereby obtaining solids containing Co and/or Ni sulfides, and a solution containing at least 70% of the Li. This process allows to convert Co and Ni to solid sulfides and at the same time to efficiently separate them from soluble compounds such as Li, Mn and other impurities.

This method for leaching an electrode material is a method for subjecting an electrode material of a lithium ion secondary battery to acid leaching, the method including a leaching step of reacting the electrode material of a lithium ion secondary battery with sulfuric acid to obtain a leachate in which metals contained in the electrode material are leached, in which the leaching step includes a sulfuric acid adding step of adding the sulfuric acid to the electrode material to obtain a sulfuric acid-added electrode material, a kneading step of kneading the sulfuric acid-added electrode material to form a leaching paste, and a diluting step of diluting the leaching paste with water.

This method for leaching an electrode material is a method for subjecting an electrode material of a lithium ion secondary battery to acid leaching, the method including a leaching step of reacting the electrode material of a lithium ion secondary battery with sulfuric acid to obtain a leachate in which metals contained in the electrode material are leached, in which the leaching step includes a sulfuric acid adding step of adding the sulfuric acid to the electrode material to obtain a sulfuric acid-added electrode material, a kneading step of kneading the sulfuric acid-added electrode material to form a leaching paste, and a diluting step of diluting the leaching paste with water.

The invention provides a process for generating a metal sulphide comprising nickel and/or cobalt, comprising the steps of: i. forming an aqueous metal sulphate solution by reacting sulphuric acid with a raw material feed comprising nickel and/or cobalt in water; ii. crystallizing said metal sulphate from said aqueous metal sulphate solution to form a crystallized metal sulphate in a mother liquor, the mother liquor comprising an uncrystallized metal sulphate; iii. separating said crystallized metal sulphate from said mother liquor; iv. reacting at least a portion of said uncrystallized metal sulphate with hydrogen sulphide in an acidic aqueous medium, thereby obtaining a slurry consisting of a solid phase comprising a metal sulphide precipitate and an aqueous phase comprising one or more impurities and sulphuric acid; and v. separating said solid phase and said aqueous phase.

The invention provides a process for generating a metal sulphide comprising nickel and/or cobalt, comprising the steps of: i. forming an aqueous metal sulphate solution by reacting sulphuric acid with a raw material feed comprising nickel and/or cobalt in water; ii. crystallizing said metal sulphate from said aqueous metal sulphate solution to form a crystallized metal sulphate in a mother liquor, the mother liquor comprising an uncrystallized metal sulphate; iii. separating said crystallized metal sulphate from said mother liquor; iv. reacting at least a portion of said uncrystallized metal sulphate with hydrogen sulphide in an acidic aqueous medium, thereby obtaining a slurry consisting of a solid phase comprising a metal sulphide precipitate and an aqueous phase comprising one or more impurities and sulphuric acid; and v. separating said solid phase and said aqueous phase.