KR102519579B1 - Electrode collecting system for spent lithium ion battery - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a system for collecting electrodes of a waste lithium ion battery, which can effectively separate and collect a positive electrode made of aluminum and a negative electrode made of copper from a cell through a configuration of deploying a pouch-type cell and using wind power. According to the present invention, the system comprises: a module cutting unit including a first workbench on which a module is loaded, a first robot disposed adjacent to the first workbench to transfer the module, and a disassembly means disposed adjacent to the first robot to perform a disassembly operation of the module; a pouch collection unit including at least one second robot collecting a pouch body disassembled by the disassembly means; a cell collection unit including a transfer table, a cutter blade provided on one side of the transfer table, and a third robot using the cutter blade to collect the cell from the pouch body and places the cell on the transfer table; and an electrode collection unit including a charging box in which the cell transported through the transfer table is contained, a pair of conveyors disposed on the lower part of the charging box, a winder disposed on the lower part of the conveyor, and a pair of nozzles disposed between the charging box and the conveyor.

Description

Waste battery electrode collection system {Electrode collecting system for spent lithium ion battery}

The present invention relates to a waste battery electrode collection system, and more particularly, to a waste battery electrode collection system capable of effectively separating and collecting an aluminum positive electrode and a copper negative electrode in a cell through a configuration in which a pouch-type cell is deployed and wind power is used. It's about the system.

As the commercialization of electric vehicles advances, the demand for lithium secondary batteries used as vehicle power sources increases, and the emission of waste lithium secondary batteries is increasing.

However, waste lithium secondary batteries contain electrolyte, which is a harmful substance, and cause environmental pollution when discarded without any treatment. Various attempts have been made to recover metals with economic value, such as (hereinafter referred to as 'valuable metals').

Accordingly, the present applicant discloses a waste lithium secondary battery batch processing system, which is a technology for recovering electrode materials and valuable metals by using a plurality of physicochemical processes after releasing waste lithium secondary batteries cell by cell, in Patent Document 1 below. .

On the other hand, a lithium secondary battery arranges a cathode and anode of a thin film structure with a separator as a boundary, and uses an electrolyte filled cell as the minimum unit, tying a plurality of cells into one module, and then combining the plurality of modules into one pack. It is made into a form and mounted on an electric vehicle.

In addition, cells are classified into prismatic, pouch-type, and circular types according to their shape. Pouch-type cells have a high production cost, but are lightweight and have excellent stability. Currently, domestic electric vehicle producers mainly use battery packs made of pouch-type cells.

On the other hand, the applicant of the present invention, paying attention to the fact that separators are integrated in a zigzag form in a pouch-type cell, determined that the electrode material could be more easily collected by considering the cell structure characteristics, and disclosed the present invention.

KR 10-2334855 B1 2021.11.30.

An object to be solved by the present invention is to provide a waste battery electrode collection system capable of effectively separating and collecting an aluminum positive electrode and a copper negative electrode in a pouch-type cell.

The waste battery electrode collection system of the present invention for solving the above problems is a first worktable on which a module is loaded, a first robot disposed adjacent to the first worktable and transporting the module, and disposed adjacent to the first robot a module cutting unit including disassembly means for disassembling the module; a pouch collection unit comprising at least one second robot for collecting the pouch body dismantled by the dismantling unit and a second worktable on which the pouch body is placed; a cell collection unit including a transfer table, a cutter blade provided on one side of the transfer table, and a third robot that collects cells from the pouch body using the cutter blade and places them on the transfer table; and a charging box in which the cells transported through the transfer table are contained, a pair of conveyors disposed under the charging box, a winder provided under the conveyor, and a battery disposed between the charging box and the conveyor. An electrode collection unit including a pair of nozzles; the third robot grips the pouch body placed on the second work table and then presses it against the cutter blade to create a shear line on the cover of the pouch body, The cover with the disconnection is directed toward the transfer table so that the cells inside the cover are discharged through the shear line and dropped onto the transfer table, and the electrode collector sprays air from the nozzle during the downward development of the separator to The positive electrode and the negative electrode are separated from the separator, and the conveyor transfers the dropped positive electrode and negative electrode to each collection tank.

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In addition, the waste battery electrode collection system of the present invention is provided with a structure for pressing the upper surface of the cell with a press supported by a spring member on top of the charging box.

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According to the waste battery electrode collection system of the present invention, since it is possible to effectively separate and collect the anode of aluminum material and the cathode of copper material in the pouch-type cell through the electrode collection unit including the nozzle and the winder, the market competitiveness of the waste battery collection system is increased. It improves.

1 is a perspective view showing a waste battery electrode collection system according to the present invention.
2 is a perspective view (a) and a plan view (b) of a turntable showing a press-cutting device of a waste battery electrode collection system according to the present invention.
3 is a schematic diagram for explaining a module disassembly process in the waste battery electrode collection system according to the present invention.
4 is a perspective view showing a cell collection unit of the waste battery electrode collection system according to the present invention.
5 is an exploded perspective view of the electrode collection unit of the waste battery electrode collection system according to the present invention.
6 is a configuration diagram showing the electrode collection unit of the waste battery electrode collection system according to the present invention.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a perspective view showing a waste battery electrode collection system according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view (a) and a plan view (b) of a turntable showing a press cutting device of a waste battery electrode collection system according to the present invention, Figure 3 is a schematic diagram for explaining a module disassembly process in the waste battery electrode collection system according to the present invention, Figure 4 is a perspective view showing the cell collection portion of the waste battery electrode collection system according to the present invention.

1 to 4, the present invention is a module cutting unit 10 for cutting and disassembling a module m, a closing portion p′ and a lead tab t of a pouch P, and the module cutting unit 10 The module (m), the finishing part (p'), and the lead tab (t) cut from the pouch collection unit (20) which separates and collects only the pouch body (p), and the cover of the pouch body (p) is sheared to collect the cells. It consists of a cell collection unit 30 that takes only (c) and an electrode collection unit 40 that takes only the positive electrode (e) and the negative electrode (f) in the cell (c).

Hereinafter, specific details of the present invention will be described focusing on the above components. First, the module cutting unit 10 includes a first work table 11 on which the module m is loaded, and a first work table 11 disposed adjacent to the first work table 11. It includes a first robot 12 and disassembly means 13 disposed adjacent to the first robot 12 to perform a module disassembly operation.

The disassembly unit 13 is configured to cut all of the finishing parts p' and the lead tab t of the four corners of the pouch P on a plane, and is one of the press cutting device 13a and the top cutting device 13b. At least one is provided, which means that the shape of the module (m) or the arrangement structure of the lead tab (t) (a structure in which the re-tab is formed on one side or arranged on both sides, see FIG. 3) is different for each manufacturer or model of the electric vehicle. In view of this, it is to cut the module (m) more efficiently using a press cutting device (13a) or a top cutting device (13b) according to the shape of the module (m).

Here, the top cutting device 13b may be replaced with a laser cutting device.

On the other hand, in the pretreatment process, the module (m) separated from the battery pack is placed on the first worktable 11 in a state of being loaded on a pallet, and the first robot 12 grips it to press-cutting device 13a Alternatively, it is placed on the turntable ta of the top cutting device 13b.

To this end, a 6-axis multi-joint robot is employed as the first robot 12, and a gripping means is mounted on the working arm.

In addition, the module (m) is placed on the turntable (ta) of each cutting device (13a, 13b) in an inverted state, and after centering and clamping work are performed with a plurality of jigs (j) for accurate cutting, as shown in FIG. As described above, the lead tab (t) and the finishing portion (p') of the four corners on a plane are cut (k), and the cut finishing portion (p') and the lead tab (t) are placed in an adjacent collection box (s). are collected separately.

The pouch collection unit 20 includes at least one second robot 21 disposed adjacent to the dismantling unit 13 and a second work table 23 on which the pouch body p is placed.

When any one of the disassembling means 13, for example, a module disassembly operation is performed in the press-cutting device 13a, the second robot 21 moves the pouch body p from the turntable ta of the press-cutting device 13a. ) is collected and placed on the second work table (23).

In addition, when a module disassembly operation is performed in another one of the disassembly means 13, for example, the top cutting device 13b, the same operation as above is performed.

The cell collection unit 30 includes a transfer table 31 made of a conveyor, a cutter blade 32 provided on one side of the entry portion of the transfer table 31, and a collection box provided adjacent to the transfer table 31 ( 33) and a third robot 34 disposed adjacent to the second work table 23.

The third robot 34 transfers the pouch body p placed on the second work table 23 while holding it, and presses it against the cutter blade 32 so that the shear line is formed on the cover of the pouch body p. let it be created

Thereafter, when the third robot 34 operates to direct the cover on which the shearing line is generated toward the transfer table 31, the cells c inside the cover are discharged through the shearing line and the transfer table 31 ) and then transferred to the electrode collection unit 40.

The remaining pouch body (p) cover is contained in the collection box 33 and taken out.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 , the electrode collector 40 is located in the charging box 41 in which the cell c transported through the transfer table 31 is contained, and the lower part of the charging box 41. A pair of conveyors 42 disposed, a winder 43 provided under the conveyor 42 to collect separators, and a pair of nozzles disposed between the charging box 41 and the conveyor 42 44 and a collection tank 45 provided at the lower part of the discharge side of each conveyor 42.

As mentioned above, the cell c put into the charging box 41 is in a state in which the separator g is integrated in a zigzag structure.

In addition, a slit groove 411 is formed on the bottom surface of the charging box 41.

In addition, the two conveyors 42 are disposed so that the entry portions face each other and are spaced apart (d) so that the separator (g) can pass therethrough.

After moving both conveyors 42 backward in the arrangement structure as described above, the operator takes one end of the separator g out of the slit groove 411 and passes it again through the spaced apart d to winder 43. Then, when both conveyors 42 are moved forward and the winder 43 is operated, the downward unfolding of the separator g starts.

Here, as shown in FIG. 6, the positive electrode (e) and the negative electrode (f) are alternately disposed on both sides of the separator (g). The positive electrode (e) and the negative electrode (f) are separated from the separator (g) by wind power and fall to both conveyors 42 disposed below, respectively, and then transferred to each collection tank 45 by the transfer of both conveyors 42. will be collected separately.

On the other hand, on the top of the charging box 41, a pressure base 412 supported by a spring member presses the upper surface of the cell c so that the downward deployment of the separator g can be performed smoothly.

In addition, the electrode collection operation in the electrode collection unit 40 takes a relatively long time compared to other operations, which may cause a temporary suspension of the entire process, thereby reducing process efficiency. Therefore, in order to prevent such a temporary suspension problem, it is preferable that the electrode collector 40 is provided in plurality.

In addition, when the air ejected from the nozzle 44 is disturbed by outside air during the separation operation between the anode (e) and the cathode (f), the normal separation operation may be disturbed. ) is preferably disclosed as a closed structure.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and it should be understood that the scope of the present invention extends to those within the scope substantially equivalent to the embodiments of the present invention. Various modifications and implementations are possible by those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains without departing from the spirit of the invention.

10: module cutting part
11: first work table 12: first robot
13a: press cutting device 13b: top cutting device
20: Pouch collection unit
21: second robot 23: second work table
30: Reject count
31: transfer table 32: cutter blade
33: collection box 34: third robot
40: electrode collection unit
41: charging box 411: slit groove
412: pressure stand 42: conveyor
421: through hole 43: winder
44: nozzle 45: collection tank

Claims (5)

A first worktable 11 on which the module m is loaded, a first robot 12 disposed adjacent to the first worktable 11 and transporting the module m, and adjacent to the first robot 12 a module cutting unit (10) including a disassembling means (13) for disassembling the module (m);
A pouch collection unit (20) comprising at least one second robot (21) for collecting the pouch body (p) dismantled by the dismantling means (13) and a second work table (23) on which the pouch body (p) is placed. ;
The transfer table 31, the cutter blade 32 provided on one side of the transfer table 31, and the cell c are collected from the pouch body p using the cutter blade 32, and the cells c are collected from the transfer table 31. Cell collection unit 30 including a third robot 34 placed on (31); and
A charging box 41 in which the cell c transported through the transfer table 31 is contained, a pair of conveyors 42 disposed under the charging box 41, and the conveyor 42 An electrode collection unit 40 including a winding machine 43 provided at the bottom and collecting the separator g, and a pair of nozzles 44 disposed between the charging box 41 and the conveyor 42;
made up of,
The third robot 34 grips the pouch body p placed on the second work table 23 and presses it against the cutter blade 32 to create a shear line on the cover of the pouch body p. The cover with the shear line is directed toward the transfer table 31 so that the cells (c) inside the cover are discharged through the shear line and dropped onto the transfer table 31,
The electrode collector 40 separates the anode (e) and the cathode (f) from the separator (g) by injecting air from the nozzle 44 during the downward development of the separator (g),
The conveyor 42 is a waste battery electrode collection system, characterized in that for transporting the dropped anode (e) and cathode (f) to each collection tank (45).
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Waste battery electrode collection system, characterized in that the upper portion of the charging box 41 is provided with a pressure base 412 supported by a spring member to press the upper surface of the cell (c).
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