• • Study recycling processes, such as direct recycling and leaching.
  • Efficient recovery of critical metals from spent lithium-ion batteries.
  • Characterisation of the materials, in order to subsequently determine the efficiency of the applied process.

In the coming years, the number of electric vehicles on the road is expected to increase. Electromobility, whether focused on electric vehicles, scooters, bicycles or scooters, always uses one or more electric motors to propel itself and receives electricity via a grid connection and stores it in batteries. Lithium-ion batteries have been recognised as one of the most practical and commercially viable battery types for electromobility. However, the use of Lithium-Ion batteries involves the use of critical raw materials such as Lithium, Graphite or Cobalt, among others, which results in a value chain dependence on extractive mining and certain mineral sources outside Europe. This is why the European Union is considering strategies to reduce dependence on these metals. In this sense, one of the alternatives is to be able to recover strategic metals from products that have reached the end of their useful life, as could be the case of electric vehicle batteries. Therefore, favouring the development of lithium-ion battery treatment processes that allow circularity to be achieved, i.e., valorising the input flows with a product of global interest for the manufacture of more environmentally sustainable batteries, is one of the most interesting options to consider in order to promote battery recycling processes, and therefore the circularity of the process, at national level, and thus not depend on other mineral sources outside Europe, to obtain raw materials for the manufacture of batteries. At regional level, Castilla y León is one of the Autonomous Communities with the highest vehicle production at national level, being one of the main powers in the automotive sector. It could thus become an ideal geographical area for the installation of plants for the recovery of critical materials from spent lithium-ion batteries from electric vehicles. Today, there is no simple solution for the recycling of spent lithium-ion batteries, as the design of the complex materials is constantly improving. In addition, it is necessary to promote the circular economy in critical raw materials, as discussed above, as their availability is essential for the implementation of the Green Transition.

• Research on metal recovery processes from batteries, brine, electronic and other waste streams and equipment.