Novel technologies & methods for Lithium batteries expansion of life cycle

The technology of Lithium batteries is nowadays greatly developing, as they are an efficient mean of energy storage. Their main use is in electric and electronic devices. Moreover after 2010, these batteries are also used in the development of electric vehicles, an industrial sector which has a high growth rate. Since these technologies are advancing and the quantitative use of Lithium batteries in Europe is expected to increase, a flow of lithium batteries waste will be generated that will need novel methods to be treated. Therefore, much research should be done focusing on the waste batteries, their collection and possibilities of reuse. Recent approaches in battery recycling are focusing on material separation and partially processed raw material re-use. But concerns about the great amounts of waste, the possible lack of the primary materials included in the batteries and also the possible soil and water contamination, is leading the scientists to find new methods of restoring, reusing and expanding the life cycle of Lithium batteries. The objective of the present work is to review the current status and future prospects of lithium batteries use and treatment as waste. The increasing importance of lithium as well as its present applications, the storage and reuse methods as well as its constraints as an energy storage material will be highlighted in the work.