Recovery of iron phosphate from waste activated sludge as a precursor for lithium-ion battery cathode materials

IF 10.9 1区环境科学与生态学 Q1 ENGINEERING, ENVIRONMENTAL

Resources Conservation and Recycling Pub Date : 2025-09-22 DOI:10.1016/j.resconrec.2025.108596

Ge Bai , Kangning Xu , Ting Xu , Jiyun Li , Min Zheng , Chengwen Wang

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Abstract

Phosphorus (P) recovery from waste activated sludge (WAS) offers a sustainable solution for resource management and circular economy in wastewater treatment. This study presents a novel approach that integrates acidic treatment of WAS with iron phosphate (FePO₄) precipitation to produce high-purity P for lithium battery cathode synthesis. Acidification using H₂SO₄ (pH 2.0) released 40% of total P, mainly from Al- and Fe-bound fractions, as confirmed by sequential P fractionation. Subsequent precipitation at a Fe:P molar ratio of 1:1 and pH 1.6 achieved 78.9% P removal and yielded FePO₄ with 98.5% purity. The recovered FePO₄ was converted to LiFePO₄/C, a cathode material that delivered an initial discharge capacity of 110.2 mAh/g at 200 mA/g and maintained 99% capacity retention over 300 cycles. The estimated P recovery cost was $6.04/kg, with a net economic benefit of $3.68/kg. This study demonstrates a promising pathway for integrated P recovery and value-added material production from WAS.

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从废活性污泥中回收磷酸铁作为锂离子电池正极材料前驱体

从废活性污泥（WAS）中回收磷(P)为废水处理的资源管理和循环经济提供了可持续的解决方案。本研究提出了一种新的方法，将WAS的酸性处理与磷酸铁（FePO4）沉淀相结合，生产用于锂电池正极合成的高纯度P。使用H2SO4 （pH 2.0）酸化释放了总磷的40%，主要来自Al和fe结合的部分，这是通过顺序P分馏得到的证实。在Fe:P摩尔比为1:1，pH为1.6的条件下，沉淀得到的FePO4去除率为78.9%，纯度为98.5%。回收的FePO4转化为LiFePO4/C，这种正极材料在200 mA/g下的初始放电容量为110.2 mAh/g，并且在300次循环中保持99%的容量保持率。P回收成本为6.04美元/kg，净经济效益为3.68美元/kg。该研究为从WAS中综合回收磷和生产增值材料提供了一条有希望的途径。

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来源期刊

Resources Conservation and Recycling 环境科学-工程：环境

CiteScore

22.90

自引率

6.10%

发文量

625

审稿时长

23 days

期刊介绍： The journal Resources, Conservation & Recycling welcomes contributions from research, which consider sustainable management and conservation of resources. The journal prioritizes understanding the transformation processes crucial for transitioning toward more sustainable production and consumption systems. It highlights technological, economic, institutional, and policy aspects related to specific resource management practices such as conservation, recycling, and resource substitution, as well as broader strategies like improving resource productivity and restructuring production and consumption patterns. Contributions may address regional, national, or international scales and can range from individual resources or technologies to entire sectors or systems. Authors are encouraged to explore scientific and methodological issues alongside practical, environmental, and economic implications. However, manuscripts focusing solely on laboratory experiments without discussing their broader implications will not be considered for publication in the journal.