National Metallurgical Laboratory (NML), Jamshedpur and Evergreen Recycle Karo Private India Limited, Mumbai, inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to boost cooperation in the sector of e-waste recycling. The agreement was signed for the extraction of cobalt metal/salt from the black powder of li-cobalt batteries. MoU transfer took place in presence of the company's CEO Rajesh Gupta and Rajeev Singhvi along with Indranil Chattoraj, director, NML.
On this occasion, CEO of Evergreen Recyclekaro Company, Rajesh Gupta, expressed satisfaction with the previous technology and was also very much excited for this part to extract cobalt from waste mobile phone batteries.
He said soon they will start the process on ton scale in association of NML.
Dr. Manis Kumar Jha, principal scientist of CSIR-NML, Jamshedpur, said that NML has expertise in developing feasible technologies to treat electronic waste being generated in huge quantity. He marked that NML is ready with different technologies and wished to enhance and explore more potential in the area of e-waste recycling so as to enhance its societal uses in health, agriculture, industrial application, training and exchange of knowledge.
Director NML, Dr. Indranil Chattoraj was very happy to express his feeling as NML has transferred 8 technologies in very short period and said much more is expected in recent times. The transfer of MoU was mentioned to be a great step towards the "Swachhata Abhiyan" and each team member was very much proud to be a part of this 'abhiyan'.
Both sides agreed to further explore more possibilities for collaboration in areas of electronic waste recycling.
Huge generation of mobile phone batteries, its rudimentary disposal, improper collection system as well as lack of cost-effective processing technology has resulted in loss of valuables encapsulated in it.
No effective technologies exist at present within the country for safe recycling of electronic waste in the industry.
In this regard, CSIR- National Metallurgical Laboratory, Jamshedpur has made sincere efforts towards the ecological recovery of cobalt and other valuable metals from the black powder and other constituents of LIBs. But heterogeneous nature of variety of batteries (branded, local and cheaper) received from the municipal waste put forward a great challenge during the technology development.
The active cathode materials of LIBs contain variable concentration of cobalt, lithium, copper, manganese, etc. which make the chemical processes for metal recovery more complex. But the hydrometallurgical route adopted by the CSIR-NML team is very selective and exigent.
