SK Innovation is moving to strengthen its technology by publishing its battery recycling technology development results in an international journal.
SK Innovation said on the 5th that its lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery recycling technology developed in-house was published in the international chemical engineering journal "Separation and Purification Technology."
The existing LFP battery recycling process carries a heavy environmental burden, including byproduct treatment and wastewater generation, and has limits in economic feasibility such as processing expense. As a solution, SK Innovation developed an eco-friendly process that selectively recovers lithium carbonate (Li₂CO₃) from LFP batteries using only water (H₂O), carbon dioxide (CO₂), and hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂).
The achievement is being evaluated as presenting a new breakthrough in the LFP recycling field, whose limits have been pointed out in terms of eco-friendliness and economic feasibility. SK Innovation's eco-friendly recycling technology reduces the existing environmental burden while efficiently recovering raw materials, and is expected to greatly contribute to future battery resource circulation and related industry expansion.
The share of LFP batteries in the electric vehicle and energy storage system (ESS) markets has been expanding rapidly recently. Thanks to advantages such as low price, high safety, and long lifespan, LFP batteries are spreading quickly not only in mid- to low-priced electric vehicles and entry-level models, but also in the ESS field.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) noted that demand for LFP driven by China has been particularly strong and said that as of 2024, LFP batteries' market share rose to 50%. SK On, a subsidiary of SK Innovation, is also preparing production of pouch-type LFP cells for ESS and electric vehicles in line with this market trend.
Kim Pil-seok, head of SK Innovation's Environmental Science and Technology Institute, said, "This achievement goes beyond the limits of existing battery recycling methods and is an important technology that drives a sustainable virtuous cycle in the battery market," adding, "By stably recovering high-purity lithium carbonate, we will mitigate lithium supply and demand risks and expand cooperation with domestic and overseas battery manufacturing, materials, and recycling corporations to help grow the industrial ecosystem."