Dallas Section Meeting

Our speaker: Bryan Tiedemann, Shiloh Scientific Consulting

Title: Developments in lithium-ion battery recycling processes (1 PDH)

Abstract:

Electric vehicles (EVs) are coming of age, and they do require a lot of batteries for useful range. Modern EVs use lithium-ion batteries (LIB) to store power, since they offer higher energy densities than most other battery technologies currently available (outside research labs), and they are widely available. EV demand is expected to grow by an order of magnitude over the next 10 years, bringing up demand for LIBs along with them. Forecasts show demand increasing from 15-20% per year (compound annual growth rate), but those forecasts keep inching higher every year.

More battery manufacturing means more demand for raw materials, with cobalt, nickel and lithium becoming increasingly valuable. Cobalt is in short supply on our planet in general, so end-of-life LIB recycling will be a critical part of the battery supply chain. This seminar will provide an overview of the three types of process technologies used for LIB recycling, with a focus on hydrometallurgical-based methods, including a membrane-supported extraction method developed by Oak Ridge National Laboratory as part of the US DOE’s critical materials strategy.

Speaker Bio:

Bryan Tiedemann is a process chemist and chemical engineer with over a decade of experience working in the chemical industry. He graduated from Caltech with a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering, and from UC Berkeley with a Ph.D. in Chemistry. He worked in ExxonMobil’s Global Basic Chemicals Technology division in Baytown, TX for 10 years, specializing in Olefins technology and supported a global fleet of steam crackers (ethylene plants). He also worked at Shell as a Process Chemist in the Deer Park, TX manufacturing facility supporting Light and Heavy Olefins, as well as Aromatics and Phenol-Acetone. While working at the startup Momentum Technologies, Bryan set up a research laboratory to develop a membrane-supported hydrometallurgy process to recycle lithium-ion batteries and designed a pilot facility to scale up the process. Currently, Bryan is an independent consultant working with a client that produces carbon-negative materials.