How Much Lithium Can I get From a Lithium - Ion Battery?

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Now I am going to tell you more about Lithium ion batteries and what they are really made from.

[@laboratoryofliptakov8157]

In 20 minutes I know more about the chemical composition than in 2 days of searching anywhere else. One of the most useful videos for researchers. Hat off and subscribed.

[@StorryGamesRo]

How did you learn? This need a subtitle!

[@darthlogicus]

@@StorryGamesRo I personally found that I had no problem understanding his accent. His accent reminds of the stereotypical "mad scientist" shtick. Delightfully so, because of its pairing with his channel content. Lol Besides this guy has an amazing knack for simplifying the subject matter. Genius is simplifying the complex. Out of curiosity, what elements of his speech did you find made it hard to follow?

[@bariumselenided5152]

@@StorryGamesRo skill issue

[@prapanthebachelorette6803]

@@darthlogicus agree 😂

[@bojohannesen4352]

Maybe you need to work on your research skills?

[@maverick9708]

fun fact: lead/sulfuric acid batteries are arguably the most recycled items by consumption. everything except some of the paper linings can get reprocessed and made into new ones and the practice is so robust that almost every battery you find in places like america are made from some recycled batteries

[@makarandrikibe3136]

Genius

[@SolRC]

Do you have a company name? I am interested in the mass recycling of batteries. I would love to see a facility that only does battery reuse.

[@maverick9708]

@@SolRC EnerSys, Panasonic, Exide Industries, Teledyne Technologies would be some of the larger companies that participate in lead-acid battery processing

[@himanshusingh5214]

Just like water.

[@KLove89]

Sssssssssssssss. That's what I call a response he wasn't expecting or wanting to hear. Lol. Love it

[@mohamedahamedazain7076]

The first time that I have seen recycling method for lithium ,good done o'man

[@Nick-co9pf]

HOLY SHIT I was not expecting that voice when he swooped around with the scooter.

[@DigitalIP]

lol agreed

[@TristanVash38]

Funny you say that. I got caught up by his voice too when he swooped in. I clicked this video before realizing it was a Thoisoi video.

[@paulcoffey359]

Struth!

[@M1551NGN0]

Only if you never saw his other videos

[@thesunexpress]

There's no doubt going to be major disasters at future car scrap-yards (~5 to 10 years) when the battery packs aren't handled properly.

[@aspjake123]

This right here. A true environmental disaster awaits us.

[@technovikingfan]

That's a really good point....very true and scary.

[@vorpalinferno9711]

Someone smart will come up with a scalable Lithium ion battery recycling process in the near future.

[@JJSmith1100]

@@vorpalinferno9711 factories recycling these batterie already exist. The more batteries become available the more recycling factories will come.

[@BigEightiesNewWave]

These are as bad as spent nuclear waste. They auto-ignite, unless buried deep into the earth.

[@randaranatunga7259]

If that intro wasn’t smooth, I don’t know what is

[@LouiesLog]

I haven't seen anything that cool for years. All it was missing was flame stickers and explosion.

[@samsungtelevision695]

Came to express similar sentiments. Dude is king of cool in my mind.

[@youtube.commentator]

Eating a bunch of peanut butter the night before

[@vincentmarzion3183]

This is the first video I've found on this topic with sound chemistry and decent results with a real yield. Thank you for documenting your process and translating it to English, much appreciated.

[@j_sum1]

This is one of your best videos yet. Thanks. And I enjoyed it because I am in the middle of a project doing exactly the same thing. Those cylindrical batteries are really tough!

[@izzieb]

A video with an important question posed the beginning. With many governments pushing for a full switch to EVs, it's important to ask what can be done with the e-waste they will create. That's ignoring issues with the availability of raw materials and emissions produced from their production.

[@Catsincages]

🤦🏻‍♀️ EV's are only being pushed upon us because politicians are universally corrupt and green tech is big, big money. Green initiatives/technology exist for the sole purpose of making money and the 'green' phenomena has nothing do with 'saving the planet' and never has. Oh and E-waste recycling is a total lie, so don't expect anyone to do anything about it other than sweep it under the carpet for as many decades as can be got away with. 😹

[@MrBrelindm]

I think this video proves there is no such thing as a circular economy.

[@themidrangeplayer8518]

@@MrBrelindm huh really

[@raxorlp9932]

@@Catsincages totaly aggree

[@giovannifoulmouth7205]

E-waste is a resource. All those batteries contain highly refined metals of known concentrations that are much easier to extract than from minerals. Basically baterries are like high grade ore.

[@khunagnes1364]

I just love thio's voice, his facial expressions and simplicity when it comes to making a video.

[@Singleraxis]

Your professionalism has changed so much over the years I've watched you, really enjoyed this video!

[@RJDA.Dakota]

Actually acting more like a big electrolytic capacitors- a slow leak capacitor. I love your channel and learn an amazing amount from your channel and videos. Absolutely wonderful‼️

[@excitedbox5705]

I wish you gave the link for the paper you used. We need more videos like this.

[@Scrizati]

Excellent and interesting video with some really relevant topics today!

[@mikekokomomike]

So after all that, the commercial recycling of lithium batteries is actually just melting them into an alloy used for what other purposes? Does not sound too green to me unless I missed something.

[@raxorlp9932]

its only green as long as its working, before and after its the biggest bullshit

[@terryboyer1342]

@Andrynor Ω Most of the components of "green" wind turbines are not recycleable and will end in landfills. I suspect the same is true of solar cells. This "green clean" narrative is mainly BS. But the uninformed buy into it and feel good about themselves.

[@Games_and_Music]

@Andrynor Ω it is pretty frustrating yeah, just today i was watching Real Time with Bill Maher, he had a guest on that said, unfortunately because of a handful of nuclear accidents, people mistakenly think that nuclear energy is less safe than coal. Coal is polluting us every day with every breath we take, but because it doesn't create headlines of terrible disasters, people don't realize it as the killer that it is, it kills more people very year than covid has so far. I mean, that in itself is not a shocking revelation, we all kinda knew this, but what i find frustrating is that Bill doesn't jump in on the nuclear, there was no response, he only wanted to hear about coal killing more than covid, but it does not seem that he is for nuclear energy. Nuclear energy is like airplanes, if one or two go down, people get scared and will avoid it like the plague, but the actual plague, eh, who cares.

[@PunishedFelix]

I think the reason why people are so scared of nuclear is because we as citizens don't control energy production and "green" energy is a nice-sounding alternative. With something as potentially destructive as uranium/plutonium reactors its easy to see why people are scared. This was pretty apparent when the public learned that thorium could be used in reactors.

[@PunishedFelix]

@Andrynor Ω I don't think the environmentalists are the real problem. They're just a demographic. The real problem are the people selling it to them.

[@HarrySinanian]

That was an awesome insight into the potential future and risks with EV ideals. Messy business, thank you for sharing.

[@woahdudecalmdown]

Good to see you back!!

[@Burnt_Gerbil]

He never left! 😛

[@tophertrimmer5841]

Thank you for all the hard work you put into this video. It’s a topic I have always been interested in and it’s very important for our future.

[@karloscuric4457]

As somebody who is dealing daily with Li-Ion batteries, you are very brave to dismantle them like this. There could be a fire easily. On the other hand, love the research.

[@rogerwilco8146]

I think the insulation was as if new. I do get freaked out a few times at how he treats those 18650s!

[@billwilliams9023]

@@rogerwilco8146 If the batteries are fully discharged there is no fire risk

[@tootalldan5702]

Great show. This reminds me the 1950s lead acid batteries and a removable top and you could unbolt a cell then replace it. Not as light but a lot more servicable.

[@Triliton]

Good work! That took somewhat process i didnt know. Your videos are the besT! :)

[@cmonkey63]

And just yesterday I was wondering how to recover the lithium from these batteries. Given the chemicals, energy, and time required it hardly seems worth it for a few grams of metal. Which is why I expect them all to become landfill for the foreseeable future.

[@ameunier41]

Sometime I don't understand the trend for big electric cars, when something like a closed golf car could be a lot more ecological and make more sense for small everyday travel. I've seen video of such a car sold by Chinese for 600$.

[@lazarian4428]

I come for the science. I stay to see the kitty. :3

[@ArtFiendz]

like an at home sperm donor

[@yooltube2022]

@@ArtFiendz what you talking about

[@chubetube]

@@yooltube2022 think about it

[@yooltube2022]

@@chubetube shush

[@taro8956]

lmaooo 😭💀

[@thomasmoore4576]

Excellent recycling it's got to be scaled up to recycle all the new batteries that is being manufactured so it doesn't go in the landfill and reused material for new batteries

[@SuperPhunThyme9]

Recycling burns oil

[@thomasmoore4576]

@@SuperPhunThyme9 doesn't have to you can burn methane you can burn hydrogen you can use Renewables wind solar why does it have to burn oil that can pump that back down in the ground where they got it from

[@thomasmoore4576]

@@SuperPhunThyme9 and stop cutting so many trees were running low on O2 if you pull up a satellite picture of the u.s. from 1960 to 2021 and look at how Brown it got instead of being green

[@thomasmoore4576]

@@SuperPhunThyme9 if it keeps going the way it's going we're all going to have to wear space suits to breathe Outdoors from all the ozone building up

[@Markle2k]

The methods and the beginnings of the infrastructure are set up for Li-Ion recycling, but car batteries have proven to be much longer lived than manufacturers expected since they are much better managed than laptop and phone batteries. And then they have a second life as stationary storage.

[@jaqueitch]

I love your channel! I am a Chemical Engineering by education and really enjoy your content

[@glashio]

Thank you, so learnful. I hope they will find a more effecient way to recycle our batteries :)

[@psycronizer]

you have invented a new word ! learnful ! nice...

[@xiaoshen194]

*Purification of metals exists* Conc. H2SO4: Did someone just call me???

[@eternalnature1413]

Very well done, excellent analysis and conclusion, thumbs up and subscribed!

[@brucewilliams6292]

Excellent video. Seeing science in action on real world problems is very interesting. Thank you for the video.

[@info-load7952]

Love these videos. Keep up the good work

[@Mysixofnine]

🍻 cheers from Oregon! Thanks for the videos!!

[@shahramarya6417]

I was looking for the formula of the lithium battery, but I did not find it, now you have discovered the secret of this phenomenon, thank you very much and great channel😍❤

[@johnmcclain3887]

Thanks for an interesting breakdown of these modern lithium-ion batteries. I found it well presented and accurate.

[@thehont1]

Thanks very much bro, priviet! we needed a good video like this, finally!

[@JohnnyWednesday]

Science knows no borders! love from the UK

[@asifalamgir4788]

Love from BD

[@JohnnyWednesday]

@@asifalamgir4788 - Peace and love to you!

[@VolV8]

Very enjoyable. Thanks for the upload ✌️

[@NeverTalkToCops1]

Ok, for your next project, separate PU239 from spent uranium fuel rods.

[@mikeconnery4652]

Lol

[@Kapalek84]

Fantastic video! The topic is super interesting and there are companies that are recycling batteries on commercial scale. Best regards!

[@chris.asi_romeo]

One of the very few Channels I enjoyed watching. 👏👏

[@nikbivation]

wow, that is some deep research, thank you!

[@lexidecimal9941]

This was amazing. Subbed. Got me really thinking and yeah, what a nightmare this is to work with after these batteries lives are done.

[@nuclearmaga9694]

always interesting to watch your videos

[@daleglastonbury96]

Thanks, that was indeed well put together.

[@no36963]

Lithium recycling should be on every researcher's mind, at least in the background, where some great innovations have occurred.

[@kentadran]

Glad internet was made and people like Thoisoi is sharing free knowledge for people

[@davidbwa]

I do not understand all of the chemistry but I enjoy watching you do it.

[@prakhardubey2901]

Best video i found for my research purpose 🙂, congrats bro you got new subscriber!!

[@Buzzhumma]

Very interesting. I have a feeling a punch is used to push the jellroll out after both ends are cut off on a auto bandsaw that is sprayed with cooland to prevent thermal runaway ! A big conveyor belt is full of cells getting the top and bottom cut !

[@dreamoftranscendence4415]

What if we just ground off the edge of both top & bottom cylinder faces to keep insides fully intact?

[@himarei]

Someone should make a cell casing that is (relatively) easy to open and reuse. It would make the recycling process much more feasible at scale.

[@seditt5146]

Yeah as you discovered here, one needs to use relatively sharp pipe cutters and cut EXTREMELY slowly else it binds the inside. When done really slowly that will not be so much of a problem.

[@masterplayer5982]

I remember when I took apart a charged lithium ion battery the anode (copper sheet) was getting warm to the touch indicating that there was lithium in the graphite. It was oxidising in air.

[@4.0.4]

John B. Goodenough did not want to just be good enough, his batteries are still the best we have!

[@shortaybrown]

Great video. Nice work !!

[@terischannel]

You are a seriously great scientist and teacher.

[@gyszabolcs]

Chemistry is awesome! Thanks for the video

[@donaldhoot7741]

It was cool to see you as a "regular" dude at the beginning! Great Video!

[@TheShivABC]

I want to thank you for answering the questions I've always had but people are too afraid to find out

[@bombero34fr]

Thank you thoisoi! Recycling is the ultimate graal for tomorow. Great video. hope somebody find the right way. I 'll be the ultimate hero.

[@sahmad120967]

great experiment...even the goal is not fully reached but it really highlight the process

[@DiannaGold]

Love your videos. Keep being awesome.

[@amanshaikh2305]

Lovely video need more like this.

[@shlomoattia7706]

good job, and thank you for sheering.

[@CookingWithCows]

Subtitles: This advertiser only has a tiny number of 60 interactive courses but until now as many as 8 million people fell for this scam.

[@marcelgaddis9319]

Is it a scam if your interest is in 1 or 2 of the 60 interactive courses? Or are you upset that they didn't offer course 76 because you really wanted to do course 76?

[@goutamboppana961]

Care elaborate about what Ur talking about

[@MrKhaz101]

@@marcelgaddis9319 idk what that guy is on about but brilliant honestly is kind of a scam. I checked out some of their courses and it’s really not at all what they advertise, it’s basically just a strictly worse khanacademy where you learn general overviews of stuff but not how to actually do any of it. I don’t think it’s the worst thing ever, but it’s learning in the same way watching edutainment KZbin videos is learning.

[@ChurchOfThought]

Brilliant is pretty bad but it's not a scam per-say. It's just not a good deal.

[@goutamboppana961]

@@MrKhaz101 oh ok

[@GuidoPerdomo]

I love your videos so so much! Is there a chance we could get a version of the video with the original audio with subtitles?

[@Burnt_Gerbil]

His main channel is Thoisoi and is in Russian. Go watch it if you like. 🤷‍♂️

[@GuidoPerdomo]

@@Burnt_Gerbil thanks! Does it have subtitles, though?

[@Burnt_Gerbil]

@@GuidoPerdomo - Nope. Either watch this video with English captions or the other one in Russian.

[@mikeconnery4652]

A great idea

[@ZoonCrypticon]

Could you have taken a different approach @11:11 ? Instead of using NaOH you could have started with HCl(aq) to transfer the different ions (Al3+, Li+, Co2+) into solution and, after vacuum filtering, let them cristalyze. Lithium chloride has a solubility of around 80 g/l , whereas cobalt(II)chloride of 529 g/l , aluminium chloride of 458 g/l each at 20°C. So you could filter lithium chloride out quite well, before the others start to cristallyze.

[@PranavkumarEA]

One of the best videos I have watched

[@amphibiousone7972]

You are among my favorite educators. Thank you for you high level content. I respect your service to our scientific knowledge. Good Fortunes Great Successes and Many Blessings.

[@RhoGamingYT]

Love your vid so much :)

[@Xibyth]

Remember folks, there are two additional factors to consider before dismantling batteries. One is just because it can output the amps needed for your device doesn't mean its drained. Two is surface charge exists, ground the batteries with a specialized device for your cells, using a ground rod can cause thermal runaway.

[@pheelix-]

Three is to use a plastic or wooden tool to remove the spot welded strips from the cells. This way you don't arc the cell even if there is or isn't any charge in it. Tip: Put some heat shrink around the tip of some needle nose pliers to help remove the strips and not arc the cell.

[@bovinespongiformflu]

I LOVE THIS CHANNEL!

[@dig1035]

fantastic! Thumbs up and subscribed!

[@ANTheWhizkid]

Thanks for the good content!

[@G1ZQCArtwork]

A good video for reference, thank you.

[@andrewbaker234]

Very interesting video, thanks.

[@squidgysailor]

Hey thanks your videos are awesome

[@FredLarracuente]

Great video! very interesting Thoisoi2 !! Looks like a very, very complicated process nevertheless. No wonder LiOn batteries get thrown away. Personally, I can't find a single place in my region that takes them for recycling. The single company I've found that will take them charges a processing fee leading me to conclude that is not economically feasible for them to do it (yet). One would think that with all this green push the manufacturers would've come up with a practical methods of recycling lion batteries, but no. I fear this will be a big issue soon and we are literaly trading fossil fuel energy independence for rare-earth dependence mostly coming from China.

[@marcusmt4746]

At the same time, there are much less rare-earth elements than oil, coal and gas.

[@FredLarracuente]

@@marcusmt4746 stripping the earth for these minerals are very very impactful to the env, but is forbidden to question tech nowadays.

[@timdillon4876]

@@FredLarracuente basically at some point if we can't find better methods, then stripping asteroids and planets in the solar system of materials might be the only solution in a long while. It'd be great if we made more breakthroughs in nuclear energy it's by far the best source of fuel and we can literally solve the coming water crises by using the passive heat from nuclear reactors to boil and make ocean water drinkable which has been done already and shown to be very effective

[@wglenbatemanjr9729]

So where does the economically FEASIBLE Lithium occur? Afganistan and the Atacama as far as I know.... and the excrements od psychotics prescribed the carbonate salts🙄😆

[@dreamoftranscendence4415]

Coming from China & South America from mines that have a negative impact on people working in them and on the environment.

[@benitoabreu4785]

Wow! You're a force to be reckoned with!! You're awesome!!!!

[@CLEATUSMCGILLICUDDY]

oh man that accent! i've been trying to master it for like 2 years and still can't even come close i love it it's hilarious!!! especially with the terrible dubbing mixed with great content. you nailed it, bravo dude. my hats off to you sir!

[@eduardojud56]

Is those polymeric separation membranes could be used as semi permeable membranes for electrolysis?

[@Buzzhumma]

I was thinking about that yesterday but they have holes only small enough for lithium ions which are very small but hydrogen will still get through i think . Amazing material engineering in it self !

[@seditt5146]

Not sure why one wouldnt use Ceramic for semi permeable membranes. The work great and mixing is minimal at best and can be all but mitigated with the most minor effort of loading the membrane first in which you basically pump it full of the ions you expect to come from the cell so what you get is ion migration but no actual mixing of the two fluids.

[@chemistryofquestionablequa6252]

@@seditt5146 ceramic is only usable for some processes and can be degraded by others. Partially dechlorinated PVC is generally superior, and also not too hard to make.

[@psycronizer]

Yes, I have used the plastic film membranes out of larger lithium polymer battery's for remote control toys , planes etc. I took a plastic vessel and cut a square hole in it, about 15 square centimeters and then sealed the hole with a sheet of the battery separator, I used silicone glue to hold it over the square hole, with about a centimeter of overlap between the vessel plastic and the separator, so it was basically like a sealed window. The rest is fairly obvious. The plastic separator material is just like ordinary plastic, fairly tough stuff, not at all fragile. Some cautions though, I found that pushing more than around 6 amps across can weaken it to the point it leaks from tiny pores forming in it, heat is an issue, an active cooling system is needed when pushing high current.

[@psycronizer]

@@seditt5146 Porcelain is made especially for that purpose, Haldenwanger Porcelain I think.

[@Mountainmonths]

love your videos!

[@excitedbox5705]

Well you only filtered half the cobalt nickel lithium solution, so you would have gotten closer to 13g. I always lose a lot of product in the filter discs because I am too lazy to scrape it all off. Assuming you did the same you could probably have gotten closer to 14 total. I think a few steps could be improved at scale and also cheaper reactions used, and then it would be worth recycling.

[@UshiromiyaXyrius]

Awesome idea !

[@shushiilvik2214]

Thank you , Mr.Scientist , I am enlightened.

[@OthmanAlikhan]

Thanks for the video =)

[@mimas165]

I'd really like to see you separating Nickel and Cobalt. As for the Lithium... how about dissolving it (with proper precautions!) in plain water in the very first step of processing? Or possibly after roasting/ashing the cathode marerial.

[@jeffarmstrong1308]

One of your better videos and that it saying a lot! Don't sell yourself short about yield. You actually achieved a yield about twice what you thought you did at 18:40 At 17:50 you say that you leave about half of that superfine precipitate behind to avoid burning out your vacuum pump so the yield of Lithium carbonate is the yield from about 5 cells not the ten you started with.

[@zazugee]

no, he compensated for that, when he weight it it was 3g something and he multiplied it by the volume fraction

[@youtube.commentator]

Excellent video

[@andrewt9204]

Nice experiment! So it sounds like the most economical way of recycling these now is freezing them, then shred and pulverize. Easier to separate the raw elements that way apparently, and freezing the batteries is easy and is supposed to make sure no reactions will occur while shredding. Now you have high quality already refined rare earth materials that just need to be separated out. This is what I have seen recently anyway and obviously has to be done in large scale with the right equipment. Redwood Recycling says they can recover 90% of usable materials already. If true, that's pretty good. If they really have this figured out, there's going to be big money in recycling this stuff when it catches on.

[@sexkrazedpanda]

I greatly enjoy Kreosan and also Super Sus. Such good videos and many interesting adventures

[@JamesChurchill]

Utterly faked videos though, 18650s don't do that.

[@sirellyn]

This is why I'm surprised we aren't switching to graphene batteries. They are SO much easier to recycle and they hold a lot more (and charge faster too).

[@andrewgivens5070]

I love this channel! I love his accent too!

[@Chad-Giga.]

I don't like the accent

[@erikziak1249]

Nice! Greetings to Estonia. :-)

[@TheJerryskid]

🤔 very interesting. Great video by the way

[@srnkp]

Too very good I'm waiting too for this vedio

[@NetRolller3D]

@16:50 It's not primarily for cost-cutting, rather, nickel oxide can actually withstand a higher current as well as pack more lithium ions for higher capacity than cobalt oxide. (Manganese is even better at handling high current, at the expense of capacity.)

[@bok..]

That thing looks fun to ride around on!

[@andrebuzeli111]

This guy is so clever that he speaks in cursive English

[@athiyamahapatra8118]

underrated comment alert- I told my mom your joke and she laughed :D

[@forbiddenera]

A better term for your "accumulator" is a cell, cells comprise a battery. Often even individual cells like 18650 cells are also still called batteries (albeit technically incorrectly) especially if used individually instead of part of a pack of cells.

[@aspjake123]

An accumulator stores energy fyi.

[@technovikingfan]

Really well done man. You just explained a very complex scientific idea to a complete dummy (me) in your second language. Takes a really smart dude to do that. Sports figures and movie stars don't impress me...smart people like you do. Please keep up the great work my friend.

[@robotslug]

The translator is using a fake accent and I'm here for it.