Despite numerous research on new active materials for anodes, graphite remains the most commonly used material in Li-ion batteries. The spherical shape of the graphite particles has proven to be beneficial for application in electric vehicles, especially for fast charging. So far, the spheroidization of natural flake graphite is conducted by a rigid and inefficient cascade process. In this work, a scalable classifier system was used for spheroidization, and it was demonstrated that a spheroidization time of 15 min is sufficient to improve material properties and enhance electrochemical performance while maintaining high process yields of 55%. Insights into the influence of the morphology on the intrinsic and structural properties of the graphite particles and manufactured electrodes are provided. Spheroidization creates a more efficient pore network in the coating layer while reducing the internal resistance and increasing the surface area of the particles by a factor of 1.8. We demonstrate that the spherical shape improves the discharge rate capability by 1.8, and the specific charge capacity could be enhanced by more than 237% at a C-rate of 3. An additional carbon coating could significantly decrease the specific surface area and increase the specific capacity at high C-rates.

A novel water-based lithium ferro-phosphate (LFP) cathode manufacturing process characterized by a significant reduction in the amount of solvent has been developed (semi-dry). To establish and validate this new process, Polytetrafluorethylene (PTFE) is used as a binder, with a binder content of 1 wt.%, minimizing the amount of inactive material within the electrode. Extrusion screws with multiple kneading zones stress the PTFE more intensively and thus produce more and smaller fibrils. The resulting extent of fibrillation is quantified by melting enthalpy as well as mechanical electrode properties. The degree of fibrillation of the binder in an electrode is known to influence the conductive electric and ionic pathways, which in turn affect the discharge capacity. It is shown that this process provides a flexible cathode layer that achieves a specific capacitance of 155 mAh g⁻¹ in initial cycling tests at 0.1 C. Compared to a conventionally processed LFP cathode, the discharge capacity and overall energy output are significantly increased, and the overall energy consumption decreases for the semi-dry processed LFP cathodes.

The synthesis and characterization of a shape-persistent triphenylene–butadiynylene macrocycle formed by intermolecular Glaser-coupling of two “half-rings” and also by intramolecular coupling of the appropriate open dimer, respectively, are described in detail. The investigation of the photophysics has revealed that—compared to its open dimer—the macrocycle is more conjugated in the ground state and less so in the excited state, a result of the diacetylene bending in the macrocycle due to its constrained topology. The macrocycle is decorated with flexible side groups that support its adsorption on highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) where a concentration-dependence of the 2D-structure is observed by means of scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM). The flexible side groups also guarantee a high compound solubility even in nonpolar solvents (cyclohexane). However, solvophobic interactions lead to the formation of a tube-like superstructure, as revealed by dynamic light scattering, X-ray scattering and atomic force microscopy.

With rising efforts to enable a circularity of valuable resources of lithium-ion batteries, a growing number of recycling companies in Europe are expanding their capacities and developing new recycling technologies. The European Union (EU) has set a benchmark for battery recycling by publishing recycling targets. These targets require precise mass determination of the individual battery components, making disassembly of the battery mandatory for characterization. The paper puts forth a semi-automated disassembly procedure for determining the composition of the components at the module and cell levels across a range of designs. Our analysis incorporates the introduction of TGA as a novel, direct method for determining the cathode active material with an accuracy above 99%. This approach is intended to define the recycling input for all extant recycling routes by providing quantitative experimental results with statistical significance. The results indicate a black mass proportion of 61.6% at the module level and 53–74% at the cell level. Additionally, there are significant differences in value creation, ranging from 0.80 to 1.81 USD kg⁻¹ black mass, depending on the cell chemistry. The procedure can be used for EoL and scrap material, and enables greater transparency and comparability in battery recycling, opening up new perspectives for the resource-efficient and targeted use of various recycling technologies.