JP6474207B2 - Waste lithium ion battery treatment method and treatment system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for treating a waste lithium ion battery used as a power source for a hybrid vehicle or an electric vehicle, and a treatment system for a waste lithium ion battery.

Conventionally, lithium ion batteries are used in a battery pack as a power source for electric vehicles such as hybrid vehicles and electric vehicles.
In general, a battery pack includes a plurality of battery modules in which a plurality of lithium ion battery cells are arranged in a resin box housing, and the battery modules are electrically connected by a wire harness or the like. In addition, the battery pack is equipped with a battery control system, a circuit that cuts off the high voltage circuit, a switch, and the like.

A lithium ion battery is composed of a positive electrode material in which lithium, cobalt, nickel or the like is applied to an aluminum foil, a negative electrode material in which graphite or the like is applied to a copper foil, an electrolyte, a separator, or the like. Since lithium batteries contain valuable materials such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, and copper, it is very important for Japan, which has few resources, to recover them from lithium batteries discarded after use.
As a method for recovering valuable materials from waste lithium ion batteries, separation and recovery are performed by roasting, crushing or crushing, sieving, sorting and the like.
The purpose of the roasting treatment is to thermally decompose and remove organic solvents such as propylene carbonate and ethylene carbonate, lithium hexafluorophosphate support salts, and separators such as polyethylene and polypropylene contained in the electrolyte. .
Patent Documents 1 to 5 describe the roasting treatment of lithium ion secondary batteries.

JP-A-6-346160 JP 7-245126 A JP 2012-79630 A JP 55-152138 A JP 2012-112027 A

The roasting of Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 is performed in an air atmosphere. Patent Document 3 exemplifies an air atmosphere, an oxidizing atmosphere, an inert atmosphere, a reducing atmosphere, and the like. Among these, an air atmosphere (air atmosphere) in which the furnace atmosphere can be easily controlled is preferable. When the roasting treatment is performed in the air atmosphere described above, the organic matter in the electrolyte and the separator is decomposed and ignited to cause combustion, so that the temperature in the furnace rises rapidly.
In order to suppress such a rapid temperature increase, in Patent Document 4, a gas such as nitrogen gas, argon gas, CO, and CO ₂ is ventilated to make a non-oxidizing atmosphere and a reducing atmosphere. It is described that temperature rise due to combustion can be prevented.
Patent Document 5 describes using a carbon source such as wood, charcoal, coal, coke, activated carbon, or the like to make the furnace atmosphere a reducing atmosphere. However, the carbon source is also flammable, and a large amount of carbon source is required to suppress ignition and combustion of the lithium battery in a reducing atmosphere.
If a small amount of lithium ion secondary battery is treated, it is possible to suppress the temperature rise due to rapid combustion by increasing the processing furnace or changing the ventilation speed. In the large-scale treatment of batteries, it is difficult to adjust the roasting atmosphere. For example, in the case of a large unit, since there are a large amount of organic compounds, a rapid temperature rise occurs due to significant combustion.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a processing method and a processing system for a waste lithium ion battery that can be recycled by an extremely simple operation.

In order to achieve the above object, a method for treating a waste lithium ion battery according to the present invention includes a battery pack (100) in which a plurality of battery modules in which a plurality of lithium ion battery cells are arranged are housed in a box-shaped enclosure. Or a method for treating a waste lithium ion battery that recovers useful metals by performing heat treatment on the battery module without individually removing the battery cells,
After storing the battery pack (100) or the battery module in a heat-resistant container (20) provided with an exhaust port (23) and a tray part (20B), the heat-resistant container (20) is placed in a heat treatment furnace (10). The battery pack (100) is charged by carrying out the heat treatment from the outside of the heat-resistant container (20) at a temperature (650 degrees (° C.)) lower than the melting point of aluminum (660 degrees (° C.)). Alternatively, the battery module is carbonized to separate the carbonized mixture and volatilize the electrolytic solution in the battery, and the volatilized electrolytic solution is discharged from the exhaust port (23) of the heat-resistant container (20) to the heat treatment furnace (10). ) wherein the Rukoto is discharged into.

  Further, the present invention is characterized in that the temperature of the heat treatment is equal to or higher than a plastic decomposition temperature (300 ° C.).

  The present invention is characterized in that the heat treatment is performed in a reducing atmosphere.

  Moreover, the present invention is characterized in that the heat treatment furnace (10) is a continuous rotary furnace in which a hearth (12) rotates and the heat-resistant container (20) can be continuously charged and discharged.

The present invention, the heat-resistant container (20) has upper lid portion (20A), the upper lid portion (20A) is at a fixed distance (L) lifting ready to the saucer portion (20B) It is characterized by being installed.

  In the present invention, the receiving part (20B) of the heat-resistant container (20) is formed with a recess for receiving and storing the melt during the heat treatment.

  Further, the present invention introduces unburned gas generated during the heat treatment to the secondary combustion chamber (50) at a temperature (800 degrees (° C.)) higher than the temperature of the heat treatment (650 degrees (° C.)). It is made to burn.

The treatment system for waste lithium ion batteries according to the present invention includes a battery pack (100) in which a plurality of battery modules in which a plurality of lithium ion battery cells are arranged are housed in a box-shaped enclosure or the battery module. A waste lithium ion battery processing system that recovers useful metals by heat treatment without individually removing the cells,
The battery pack (100) or the battery module is stored, and a heat-resistant container (20) provided with an exhaust port (23) and a tray part (20B),
A heat-treating furnace (10) capable of temperature control that heat-treats in a reducing atmosphere,
By heating the heat- resistant container (20) charged into the heat treatment furnace (10) from the outside at a temperature (650 degrees (° C.)) lower than the melting point of aluminum (660 degrees (° C.)), the battery pack ( 100) or the battery module is carbonized to separate the carbonized mixture and volatilize the electrolyte in the battery.

The waste lithium ion battery processing system according to the present invention includes a battery pack (100) in which a plurality of battery modules in which a plurality of lithium ion battery cells are arranged are housed in a box-shaped casing, or the battery module. A waste lithium ion battery treatment system that recovers useful metals by heat treatment without individually removing battery cells,
The battery pack (100) or the battery module is stored, and a heat-resistant container (20) provided with an exhaust port (23) and a tray part (20B) ,
A temperature-controllable heat treatment furnace (10);
A container transfer device (30) capable of charging and discharging the heat-resistant container (20) in the heat treatment furnace (10);
The heat-resistant container (20) charged in the heat treatment furnace (10) is heated from the outside at a temperature (650 degrees (° C.)) lower than the melting point of aluminum (660 degrees (° C.)). 20) The inside of the battery pack (100) or the battery module is dry-distilled to separate the carbonized mixture, and the electrolyte in the battery is volatilized to discharge the heat treatment furnace (20) from the exhaust port (23) of the heat-resistant container (20) 10) It is made to discharge in.

The present invention also includes a hearth rotating device (40) for horizontally rotating the hearth (12) of the heat treatment furnace (10),
The heat-resistant container (20) is continuously charged through the container transfer device (30), and a plurality of heat-resistant containers (20) are placed on the hearth (12) in an annular shape and are rotated once. The heat-resistant container (20) is continuously discharged from the hearth (12).

The present invention, the heat-resistant container (20) has upper lid portion (20A), the upper lid portion (20A) is at a fixed distance (L) lifting ready to the saucer portion (20B) It is characterized by being installed.

  In the present invention, the receiving part (20B) of the heat-resistant container (20) is formed with a recess for receiving and storing the melt during the heat treatment.

The present invention also provides a secondary combustion chamber (50) combustible at a temperature (800 degrees (° C.)) higher than the temperature of the heat treatment furnace (10) (650 degrees (° C.)).
A duct (61) connecting the secondary combustion chamber (50) and the heat treatment furnace (10);
A fan (62) provided in the duct (61) for sending unburned gas in the heat treatment furnace (10) to the secondary combustion chamber (50) through the duct (61);
The unburned gas is burned in the secondary combustion chamber (50).

  Note that symbols in parentheses indicate corresponding elements or corresponding matters described in the drawings and modes for carrying out the invention described later.

According to the waste lithium ion battery treatment method and treatment system of the present invention, for a battery pack or battery module in which a plurality of battery modules in which a plurality of lithium ion battery cells are arranged are housed in a box-shaped enclosure. Since the battery pack or the battery module is subjected to a heat treatment without removing the battery cells individually to separate the carbonized mixture, the resin casing of the battery pack or each battery cell of the battery module is removed. A resin frame to be sandwiched and carbon used for a negative electrode material of a lithium ion battery are separated from a metal containing a useful metal as a carbonized mixture.
The heat treatment at this time can be achieved in various furnaces using electricity, heavy oil, and gas as a heat source. In addition, effective use of thermal energy can be achieved by using waste heat generated during the production of cement, for example, cement.
In addition, since the heating temperature at that time is set so that the aluminum does not melt at a temperature lower than the melting point of aluminum, a metal containing useful metals as a subsequent treatment as compared with the case where aluminum is melted. The process which isolate | separates a useful metal from can be performed easily.

  Further, since the temperature of the heat treatment at this time is equal to or higher than the plastic decomposition temperature (300 degrees (° C.)), the resin material is surely separated from the metal.

  And, if the heat treatment is carried out in a reducing atmosphere, combustible materials such as plastic are not burned, so dioxins are not generated, and slag formation due to metal oxidation is also suppressed. The lithium ion battery can be rendered harmless. Moreover, temperature runaway due to burning of plastic or the like can be prevented.

In addition, according to the present invention, the battery pack or the battery module is stored in the heat-resistant container provided with the exhaust port, and then charged into the heat treatment furnace and heated from the outside of the heat-resistant container. The carbonized mixture can be separated by dry distillation of the internal battery pack or battery module in a reducing atmosphere.
At this time, the low boiling point electrolyte in the battery is volatilized and discharged from the exhaust port of the heat-resistant container into the heat treatment furnace and the air in the heat-resistant container is discharged. The battery pack or battery module is a heat-resistant container in a reducing atmosphere. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the risk of the waste lithium ion battery exploding in the furnace. Moreover, by putting the waste lithium ion battery in a heat-resistant container and heat-treating it, the volatile gas is discharged from the heat-resistant container, so that the heat-resistant container is reduced without any action, and the internal pressure of the heat-resistant container is higher than in the furnace Therefore, it is possible to maintain a reducing atmosphere without controlling the atmosphere with a reducing agent or a reducing gas as in other roasting treatment techniques (prior art documents, patent documents 3, 4 and 5). As shown in the example, it is not necessary to introduce a large amount of carbon source.
Furthermore, two types of organic gases, gas generated by volatilization of the electrolyte and gas generated by thermal decomposition of combustible materials such as plastic, are exhausted from the exhaust port of the heat-resistant container into the heat treatment furnace. Since these are used as fuel for heat treatment, the fuel cost can be reduced. In adjusting the temperature by burning these organic gases in the furnace, the temperature can be easily controlled by controlling the amount of oxygen.

  As described above, according to the present invention, for example, the battery pack removed from the hybrid vehicle is left as it is, that is, without disassembling the inside of the battery pack. Recycling can be performed with simple operations. Further, even if the inside of the battery pack is disassembled, it is possible to simply carry out the recycling process because it is not necessary to individually remove the battery cells up to the battery module.

In addition, according to the present invention, since the heat treatment furnace is a continuous rotary furnace, the hot gas circulates in the furnace while swirling, and thereby the temperature in the furnace can be made uniform. It is not necessary to set the upper processing temperature lower, and the processing temperature can be set higher. In particular, it is advantageous that the processing temperature is as high as possible within a range in which aluminum does not melt because the processing time can be shortened.
Moreover, if a plurality of heat-resistant containers are placed on the hearth in a ring shape with a space between each other, the heat-resistant containers can be heated uniformly in the heat treatment furnace, so that there is little temperature variation.
In addition, when processing waste lithium ion batteries, the type and amount of gas generated at the beginning and end of processing often differ, but the type of unburned gas exhausted from the heat treatment furnace by continuous processing Since the amount is stabilized, the control for treating the unburned gas can be easily performed thereafter.

  Further, according to the present invention, even if a situation in which the internal pressure of the heat resistant container increases, the upper lid portion that constitutes the heat resistant container is lifted by a certain distance with respect to the tray portion, so that the heat resistant container is damaged. Is prevented.

  In addition, according to the present invention, since the recess portion of the heat-resistant container is formed with a recess for receiving and storing the melted material during the heat treatment, the melted material such as plastic is prevented from spilling out of the heat-resistant container. The

  In addition, according to the present invention, since unburned gas is introduced from the heat treatment furnace to the secondary combustion chamber and burned at a temperature higher than the temperature of the heat treatment furnace, generation of odor can be suppressed. In addition, if unburned gas is used, for example, by returning it to the manufacturing process of a cement factory, it is not necessary to provide a new facility as a secondary combustion chamber. It can also be rendered harmless.

  In addition, like the processing method and the processing system of the waste lithium ion battery of the present invention, the battery pack or the battery module is directly heat-treated to separate the carbonized mixture by subjecting the battery pack or the battery module to heat treatment. Such a processing method is not described at all in Patent Documents 1 to 5 described above.

It is a cross-sectional view which shows the outline | summary of the processing system of the waste lithium ion battery which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the outline | summary of the processing system of the waste lithium ion battery which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a cross-sectional view which shows the heat-resistant container just before thrown into the heat treatment furnace in the processing system of the waste lithium ion battery of FIG. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the heat-resistant container just before thrown into the heat treatment furnace in the processing system of the waste lithium ion battery of FIG.

With reference to FIG. 1 thru | or FIG. 4, the processing method using the processing system of the waste lithium ion battery which concerns on embodiment of this invention and its system is demonstrated.
This waste lithium ion battery processing system recovers useful metals by heat-treating a battery pack 100 in which a plurality of battery modules in which a plurality of lithium ion battery cells are arranged are housed in a box-type housing. A plurality of heat-resistant containers 20 in which the battery pack 100 is mainly stored, a heat-treating furnace 10 capable of controlling the temperature, and a container transport device 30 capable of loading and unloading the heat-resistant containers 20 into and from the heat-treating furnace 10 are provided.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the heat treatment furnace 10 is a substantially cylindrical vertical furnace in which a furnace wall 11 is formed of a steel plate covered with a refractory material, and is heated by a gas burner 15. In the vicinity of the gas burner 15, there is provided a nozzle 17 for supplying air used for combustion and cooling sent through a fan 16 into the furnace. The temperature and pressure in the furnace are detected by a temperature sensor 18A and a pressure sensor 19A, and are controlled by a temperature controller 18B and a pressure controller 19B. In addition, although it was set as the structure which provided one gas burner 15 in FIG. 1, you may make it provide multiple units, such as four units | sets.
The hearth 12 of the heat treatment furnace 10 is made of a steel plate covered with a refractory material like the furnace wall 11 and is horizontally moved by a hearth rotating device 40 including a motor 41, a chain 42 for transmitting power, a sprocket 43, and the like. Rotated.
In the heat treatment furnace 10, a plurality of heat-resistant containers 20, 8 in this case, are charged, and are placed on the hearth 12 in a ring shape and at a certain interval with respect to the adjacent heat-resistant containers 20. .

A part of the furnace wall 11 of the heat treatment furnace 10 is formed with an opening 11A that is vertically separated from the outside by an openable and closable furnace body door 11B. A heat treatment furnace is formed on the outer periphery of the opening 11A from the opening 11A. A container transfer device 30 is provided that puts the heat-resistant container 20 into the heat treatment container 10 and discharges the heat-resistant container 20 after having made a round in the heat treatment furnace 10 from the heat treatment furnace 10.
The configuration of the container transfer device 30 is not particularly limited, but here, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the direction on the line connecting the opening 11A of the heat treatment furnace 10 and the center of the heat treatment furnace 10 (FIG. 1). The pusher portion 30A that contacts the heat-resistant container 20 by the forward rotation of the motor 31 and pushes the heat-resistant container 20 into the heat treatment furnace 10, and a hanger 21 provided on the outer periphery of the heat-resistant container 20. A claw 32 that stops is provided at the tip, and includes a pull-out portion 30B that pulls the heat-resistant container 20 out of the heat treatment furnace 10 by negative rotation of the motor 31. The pusher portion 30A is disposed immediately above the pull-out portion 30B.

Further, immediately before the heat-resistant container 20 is put into the heat treatment furnace 10, that is, on the outer periphery of the openable furnace body door 11B, the slide base 35 is movable in the tangential direction (left and right direction in FIG. 1) of the heat treatment furnace 10. The slide base 35 is placed on the slide base 35 and connected to the end of the slide base 35. The slide base 35 is opened and closed with a furnace front chamber 38 (position in FIG. 1) provided at a front position of the furnace body door 11B. It is possible to move between the stands 39 located outside with the furnace front chamber door 37 of the type. The furnace front chamber 38 is separated from the outside by a furnace front chamber door 37, and is separated from the heat treatment furnace 10 by a furnace body door 11 </ b> B so as to suppress a temperature change when the furnace body door 11 </ b> B is opened. ing. Further, by providing the furnace front chamber 38, the atmosphere in the heat treatment furnace 10 is maintained, and dangerous gas leaks and hot air are prevented from blowing out.
When the slide base 35 is moved onto the stand 39, the heat-resistant container 20 before being heated by a crane (not shown) is placed on the slide base 35 and then carried to the furnace front chamber 38 by the base moving device 36. The heat-resistant container 20 after being heated is similarly carried by the base moving device 36 from the furnace front chamber 38 to the stand 39, and then automatically moved to the cooling chamber (not shown). The base moving device 36 moves the slide base 35 connected to the tip of the shaft 36B by expanding and contracting the shaft 36B by driving the motor 36A.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the heat-resistant container 20 in which the battery pack 100 is stored has a cylindrical shape as a whole, and two sets of battery packs 100 stacked in four stages are provided inside, for a total of eight. Battery pack 100 is stored. The battery pack 100 is formed by stacking a plurality of stages (four stages) of the battery pack 100 as it is removed from a hybrid vehicle or an electric vehicle.
The heat-resistant container 20 includes an upper lid portion 20A and a saucer portion 20B. The lower end of the upper lid portion 20A is fitted into a groove portion 22 provided on the outer periphery of the saucer portion 20B, and sand is embedded in the groove portion 22 to form a sand seal. ing. At this time, an exhaust port 23 is provided in the upper part of the upper lid portion 20A of the heat-resistant container 20, and a hanger 21 is provided in the lower container 20B. Further, the upper lid portion 20A is attached to the tray portion 20B in a state where it can be lifted by a certain distance L.
Here, the heat-resistant container 20 is divided into two parts by the upper lid part 20A and the lower container 20B, and the upper lid part 20A can be lifted with respect to the saucer part 20B by using a sand seal structure. As long as the upper lid portion 20A has a structure that allows the increased pressure to escape, any structure such as a buffer mechanism may be used.
In addition, any battery pack 100 that can store a plurality of battery packs 100 and that is excellent in heat resistance and that is provided with an exhaust port 23 in the upper part can be used.

In particular, the heat-resistant container 20 has a structure in which the upper lid portion 20A is attached to the saucer portion 20B in a state where it can be lifted by a certain distance L. Even if the pressure increases, the pressure increased by the lifting of the upper lid 20A is lowered, so that the heat resistant container 20 is prevented from being damaged.
A recess (not shown) for receiving and storing a melted material such as plastic during heat treatment is formed in the tray 20B of the heat resistant container 20 to prevent the melted material such as plastic from spilling out of the heat resistant container 20. You may do it.
In this embodiment, the heat resistant container 20 is made of stainless steel (SUS304) that can withstand a temperature of at least 650 degrees (° C.).

A secondary combustion chamber 50 is provided at a position away from the heat treatment furnace 10, and the secondary combustion chamber 50 and the heat treatment furnace 10 are connected by a duct 61. The duct 61 is provided with a fan 62 that sends unburned gas in the heat treatment furnace 10 to the secondary combustion chamber 50 via the duct 61.
The secondary combustion chamber 50 is also heated by the gas burner 51, and air used to burn unburned gas in the secondary combustion chamber 50 is supplied into the secondary combustion chamber 50 via the fan 52. Further, the temperature in the secondary combustion chamber 50 is also detected by the temperature sensor 53 in the same manner as the heat treatment furnace 10 and is controlled and controlled by a temperature controller (not shown).
The secondary combustion chamber 50 is provided with an exhaust chimney 54.

  The heat treatment furnace 10 side of the duct 61 is led into the heat treatment furnace 10 from the center of the upper surface of the heat treatment furnace 10 as shown in FIG. 2, and the tip 61 a position is lower than the upper surface position of the battery pack 100 in the heat resistant container 20. It is set to be. Here, the position of the front end (lower end) 61a of the duct 61 is set to the same position as the height between the third stage and the fourth stage from the top of the battery pack 100 stacked in four stages in the heat-resistant container 20. Thus, by setting the heat treatment furnace side tip of the duct 61 to be lower than the upper surface position of the battery pack in the heat-resistant container 20, hot air convects greatly from above to below and from below to above in the heat treatment furnace 10. The internal battery pack 100 is efficiently dry-distilled. Therefore, in particular, even if a plurality of battery packs 100 are stacked in the heat-resistant container 20 (four stages in this embodiment), the battery pack 100 can be sufficiently recycled, so that even if the number of battery packs 100 to be processed is large, it is short. Can be processed in time.

  A method for treating a waste lithium ion battery using the waste lithium ion battery treatment system thus configured will be described.

(1) First, a pre-purge for discharging the residual gas in the heat treatment furnace 10 to the outside of the furnace is performed for 5 minutes, and then the gas burner 15 is ignited to raise the furnace temperature to 650 degrees (° C.) to keep the temperature constant. The control to hold is performed.

(2) Next, the furnace front chamber door 37 is opened, and the slide base 35 is advanced to the position of a stand 39 provided outside the furnace front chamber 38 via the base moving device 36. Then, using a crane (not shown), eight used battery packs 100 are stored as shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 (stored in a state where two sets of four-tiered ones are butted together) ) The heat-resistant container 20 is installed on the slide base 35 moved to the position of the stand 39.
(3) Next, the slide base 35 is retracted from the position of the stand 39 into the furnace front chamber 38 via the base moving device 36, and the furnace front chamber door 37 is closed.
(4) After opening the furnace body door 11 </ b> B, the pusher part 30 </ b> A of the container transport device 30 is advanced to put the heat-resistant container 20 into the heat treatment furnace 10.
As a result, the heat-resistant container 20 is placed on the hearth 12 of the heat treatment furnace 10 at the 6 o'clock position in FIG.

(5) Next, after the pusher portion 30A of the container transport device 30 is retracted, the furnace door 11B is closed.
(6) Next, the hearth 12 is rotated 45 degrees (°) counterclockwise via the hearth rotating device 40. The rotation of 45 degrees (°) is not particularly limited. For example, the rotation is set to rotate once in 37.5 minutes and make one turn in 5 hours.

(7) Then, the processes (1) to (6) are repeated seven times.
Thereby, as shown in FIG. 1, the eight heat-resistant containers 20 are mounted on the hearth 12 of the heat treatment furnace 10 in an annular shape.
At this time, the heat-resistant container 20 is heated from the outside during one round in the heat treatment furnace 10, so that the inside of the heat-resistant container 20 is in a reducing atmosphere, and therefore the battery pack 100 stored in the heat-resistant container 20 is made of resin. Plastics such as the housing of the above are separated from materials containing useful metals such as lithium, cobalt, nickel and manganese as carbonized mixtures by dry distillation. In addition, since the heat-resistant container 20 is heated at a temperature (650 degrees (° C.)) lower than the melting point of aluminum (660 degrees (° C.)), the aluminum component used in the battery pack 100 does not melt. In addition, the electrolyte in the battery is volatilized and discharged from the exhaust port 23 of the heat-resistant container 20 into the heat treatment furnace 10 together with the gas generated by the thermal decomposition of the combustible material such as plastic. The two types of gases discharged from the exhaust port 23 of the heat-resistant container 20 are combustible gases and are reused as heat sources in the heat treatment furnace 10.
At this time, the temperature in the heat treatment furnace 10 is controlled by the combustion of the combustible gas released from the exhaust port 23 of the heat-resistant container 20 into the heat treatment furnace 10 by adjusting the oxygen amount of the air supplied through the nozzle 17. This is done by controlling the amount.
Further, the unburned gas in the heat treatment furnace 10 is guided to the secondary combustion chamber 50 and burned at a temperature (800 degrees (° C.)) higher than the temperature (650 degrees (° C.)) of the heat treatment furnace 10.

(8) When the heat-resistant container 20 makes one round in the heat treatment furnace 10, the furnace body door 11B is opened and the pull-out portion 30B of the container transport device 30 is advanced to the position of the heat-resistant container 20, and as shown in FIG. The nail | claw 32 provided in the part 30B front-end | tip is latched by the hanger 21 provided in the heat-resistant container 20. FIG.
(9) Then, the pull-out portion 30B is retracted, the heat-resistant container 20 is pulled out from the heat treatment furnace 10 and placed on the slide base 35, and the furnace body door 11B is closed.

(10) Next, after opening the furnace front chamber door 37, the slide base 35 on which the heat-treated heat-resistant container 20 is placed is advanced to the position of the stand 39 via the base moving device 36. In this state, when the furnace front chamber door 37 is half closed and the slide base 35 is returned to the original position, the heat-resistant container 20 is placed on the stand 39 in contact with the half closed chamber front door 37. The furnace front chamber door 37 is fully closed.

(11) Thereafter, the heat-treated heat-resistant container 20 on the slide base 35 moved to the position of the stand 39 is placed on a transfer conveyor (not shown) and carried to a cooling chamber (not shown). In (10), the heat-resistant container 20 can be placed on a transfer conveyor and automatically conveyed by contacting the half-closed furnace front chamber door 37. Then, instead of the heat-treated heat-resistant container 20, eight used battery packs 100 are used on the slide base 35 using a crane (not shown) in the same manner as shown in (2). Is installed, and (3) the following processing is repeated.
In addition, the heat-resistant heat-resistant container 20 that has been transported to the cooling chamber is subjected to a process of further separating useful metals such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, and manganese from those obtained by removing the carbonized mixture in the battery pack 100 inside. .

  According to the processing method and the processing system of the waste lithium ion battery configured as described above, the battery pack 100 in which a plurality of battery modules in which a plurality of lithium ion battery cells are arranged is housed in a box-shaped housing is provided. Then, after storing in the heat-resistant container 20 provided with the exhaust port 23, the battery pack 100 inside the heat-resistant container 20 is dry-distilled by putting it into the heat treatment furnace 10 and heating from the outside of the heat-resistant container 20, thereby separating the carbonized mixture. Since it did in this way, the resin casing of the battery pack 100, the carbon used for the negative electrode material of a lithium ion battery, etc. are isolate | separated from the metal in which a useful metal is contained as a carbonization mixture. In addition, the heating temperature at that time is 650 degrees (° C.), and it is set so that the aluminum does not melt at a temperature lower than the melting point of aluminum (660 degrees (° C.)). And the process which isolate | separates a useful metal from the metal in which a useful metal is contained as a subsequent process can be performed easily.

At this time, the electrolyte in the battery is volatilized, and the volatile gas is discharged into the heat treatment furnace 10 from the exhaust port 23 of the heat-resistant container 20, so that the heat-resistant container 20 is reduced without any action. Thus, it is not necessary to introduce a reducing gas or a carbon source, and the battery pack 100 is protected by the heat-resistant container 20 in a reducing atmosphere, so that the risk of explosion of the waste lithium ion battery in the heat treatment furnace 10 is suppressed. Can do. In addition, since combustible materials such as plastic are not burned, temperature runaway can be prevented, and slag formation due to metal oxidation is also suppressed, so that waste lithium ion batteries can be rendered harmless. .
According to this, with the battery pack 100 removed from the hybrid vehicle as it is, that is, without disassembling the inside of the battery pack 100 and removing the battery cells individually, the battery pack 100 is stored in the heat-resistant container 20, and the heat treatment furnace 10. Therefore, it is only necessary to heat from the outside, so that the recycling process can be carried out with a very simple operation.

  Further, since the unburned gas is guided from the heat treatment furnace 10 to the secondary combustion chamber 50 and burned at a temperature (800 degrees (° C.)) higher than the temperature of the heat treatment furnace 10 (650 degrees (° C.)) Odor generation can be suppressed.

  In the present embodiment, the uniform heat treatment is performed by using the heat treatment furnace 10 in which the hearth 12 rotates. However, by heating the heat-resistant container 20 from the outside at a temperature lower than the melting point of aluminum, As long as the heat treatment furnace is capable of separating the carbonized mixture by dry distillation of the battery pack 100, the hearth 12 may not necessarily rotate. In addition, although a plurality of heat-resistant containers 20 are continuously charged and discharged into the heat treatment furnace 10, a batch type can also be applied.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the furnace temperature in the heat treatment furnace 10 is increased to 650 degrees (° C.) to keep the temperature constant, so that the processing time is shortened by setting the temperature as high as possible within a range where aluminum does not melt. However, the temperature of the heat treatment is not particularly limited since the resin material is decomposed and separated from the metal if the temperature is equal to or higher than the plastic decomposition temperature (300 ° C.).

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the heat-resistant container 20 in which the battery pack 100 is stored is put into the heat treatment furnace 10 in an oxidizing atmosphere and heat-treated, but it can also be applied in a reducing atmosphere or an inert atmosphere.
In particular, if the inside of the heat treatment furnace 10 is set in a reducing atmosphere, the battery pack 100 directly charged without using the heat-resistant container 20 is heat-treated to dry-distill the battery pack 100 to separate the carbonized mixture and The electrolyte solution can be volatilized.

Moreover, although this embodiment demonstrated what used the heat processing furnace 10 which uses gas as a heat source as heat processing, the various furnaces which use electricity and heavy oil as a heat source can also be used. In addition, effective use of thermal energy can be achieved by using waste heat generated during the production of cement, for example, cement.
Further, in the present embodiment, the battery pack 100 is heat-treated with respect to the battery pack 100 without removing the individual battery cells, but the battery module disassembled from the battery pack 100 (in this case also the battery cell). The heat-resistant container 20 containing the unit is stored in the heat treatment furnace 10 for heat treatment, or the battery module unit is directly charged in a reducing atmosphere furnace for heat treatment. By doing so, the battery module can be dry distilled to separate the carbonized mixture and volatilize the electrolyte in the battery.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Heat treatment furnace 11 Furnace wall 11A Opening part 11B Furnace door 12 Furnace floor 15 Gas burner 16 Fan 17 Nozzle 18A Temperature sensor 18B Temperature controller 19A Pressure sensor 19B Pressure controller 20 Heat-resistant container 20A Upper lid part 20B Sauce part 21 Hanger 22 Groove part 23 Exhaust port 30 Container transfer device 30A Pusher portion 30B Pullout portion 31 Motor 32 Claw 35 Slide base 36 Base moving device 36A Motor 36B Shaft 37 Furnace chamber door 38 Furnace chamber 39 Stand 40 Hearth rotating device 41 Motor 42 Chain 43 Sprocket 50 Secondary Combustion Chamber 51 Gas Burner 52 Fan 53 Temperature Sensor 54 Chimney 61 Duct 61a Tip 62 Fan 100 Battery Pack

Claims (13)

A battery pack in which a plurality of battery modules in which a plurality of lithium ion battery cells are arranged is housed in a box-shaped enclosure or a heat treatment is performed on the battery module without removing the battery cells individually, thereby obtaining useful metals. A method for treating a waste lithium ion battery to be recovered, comprising:
After storing the battery pack or the battery module in a heat-resistant container provided with an exhaust port and a saucer, the heat-resistant container is put into a heat treatment furnace, and the heat treatment is performed from the outside of the heat-resistant container from the melting point of aluminum. The battery pack or the battery module is carbonized to separate the carbonized mixture and volatilize the electrolyte in the battery, and the volatilized electrolyte is discharged to the exhaust port of the heat-resistant container. waste processing method of a lithium ion battery, wherein Rukoto is discharged to the heat treatment furnace from.   The method for treating a waste lithium ion battery according to claim 1, wherein the temperature of the heat treatment is equal to or higher than a decomposition temperature of the plastic.   The method for treating a waste lithium ion battery according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the heat treatment is performed in a reducing atmosphere. The heat treatment furnace, the hearth rotates, the waste lithium ion battery according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the is a heat-resistant container a continuous rotary furnace which can continuously charged and continuous discharge Processing method. The heat-resistant container has a top lid, the upper lid portion to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that mounted at a fixed distance floating possible state with respect to the pan section The processing method of the waste lithium ion battery as described. Wherein the saucer portion of the heat-resistant container, the processing method of waste lithium ion battery according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that recess save up undergoing melt during the heat treatment is formed . The waste according to any one of claims 1 to 6 , wherein unburned gas generated during the heat treatment is introduced into a secondary combustion chamber and burned at a temperature higher than the temperature of the heat treatment. A method for treating a lithium ion battery. A battery pack in which a plurality of battery modules in which a plurality of lithium ion battery cells are arranged is housed in a box-shaped enclosure or a heat treatment is performed on the battery module without removing the battery cells individually, thereby obtaining useful metals. A waste lithium ion battery processing system to be recovered,
The battery pack or the battery module is stored, and a heat-resistant container provided with an exhaust port and a tray part;
A heat-treating furnace with a temperature control that heat-treats in a reducing atmosphere,
The heat- resistant container put in the heat treatment furnace is heated from the outside at a temperature lower than the melting point of aluminum to dry-distill the battery pack or the battery module to separate the carbonized mixture and volatilize the electrolyte in the battery. Waste lithium ion battery treatment system characterized by A battery pack in which a plurality of battery modules in which a plurality of lithium ion battery cells are arranged is housed in a box-shaped enclosure or a heat treatment is performed on the battery module without removing the battery cells individually, thereby obtaining useful metals. A waste lithium ion battery processing system to be recovered,
The battery pack or the battery module is stored, and a heat-resistant container provided with an exhaust port and a tray part ;
A temperature-controllable heat treatment furnace;
A container transfer device capable of charging and discharging the heat-resistant container in the heat treatment furnace;
The battery pack or the battery module inside the heat-resistant container is dry-distilled by heating the heat-resistant container put into the heat treatment furnace from the outside at a temperature lower than the melting point of aluminum to separate the carbonized mixture and inside the battery The waste lithium ion battery treatment system is characterized in that the electrolyte solution is volatilized and discharged from the exhaust port of the heat-resistant container into the heat treatment furnace. A hearth rotating device for horizontally rotating the hearth of the heat treatment furnace,
Through the container transport device, the heat-resistant containers are continuously charged to place a plurality of heat-resistant containers in an annular shape on the hearth, and the one-time heat-resistant containers are continuously discharged from the hearth. The waste lithium ion battery treatment system according to claim 9 . The heat-resistant container has a top lid, the upper lid portion to any one of claims 8 to 10, characterized in that mounted at a fixed distance floating possible state with respect to the pan section The waste lithium ion battery treatment system described. The waste lithium ion battery treatment system according to any one of claims 8 to 11 , wherein the tray portion of the heat-resistant container is formed with a concave portion that receives and accumulates the melt during the heat treatment. . A secondary combustion chamber capable of burning at a temperature higher than the temperature of the heat treatment furnace;
A duct connecting the secondary combustion chamber and the heat treatment furnace;
A fan that is provided in the duct and sends unburned gas in the heat treatment furnace to the secondary combustion chamber through the duct;
The waste lithium ion battery treatment system according to any one of claims 8 to 12 , wherein the unburned gas is burned in the secondary combustion chamber.