Leitat has launched this Wednesday at its central headquarters in Terrassa a laboratory specialized in the direct recycling of batteries, a pioneering infrastructure that becomes the first of these characteristics both in Catalonia and in the whole of Spain.
A pioneering center in Terrassa
The new equipment has been designed to comprehensively address the treatment of used batteries and materials linked to their manufacturing. The facility incorporates the reception and storage of end-of-life batteries, in addition to the controlled and automated disassembly of packs, modules, and cells.
It also includes the classification by chemistry and state of health of the different components, as well as the separation and recovery of active materials, a key step to favor their reintroduction into new industrial processes.
Direct recycling by dry route
The laboratory works with the direct dry-route recycling method, a technology that allows for the direct recovery of active materials present in batteries. This system preserves their structure and functional value, while reducing or eliminating the use of liquids and complex chemical processes.
Among the materials that can be recovered are lithium, nickel, cobalt, and manganese, elements with a growing strategic weight in the value chain of electric mobility and energy storage.
Treatment of batteries and manufacturing waste
The facility is not only oriented towards batteries that have exhausted their useful life. The laboratory will also work with waste and surplus materials from manufacturing processes, with the aim of expanding utilization options and reducing the volume of waste associated with this industry.
With this launch, Terrassa incorporates a singular infrastructure in the field of advanced battery treatment, at a time when the recovery of critical materials gains weight within the industrial and energy transition.