Coherent Evaluates Strategic Alternatives for Its Advanced Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Technology

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Coherent Corp., a global leader in materials, networking, and lasers, today announced that as a result of an ongoing strategic portfolio assessment, the company will evaluate strategic alternatives for its Streamlined Hydrometallurgical Advanced Recycling Process (SHARP™) technology to efficiently recover and recycle critical metals from lithium-ion batteries (LiBs).

With the increasing global demand for LiBs, driven by electric vehicles, energy storage systems, electronics, and other applications, the recycling of end-of-life LiBs is more critical than ever. SHARP™ technology addresses this challenge by enabling the production of cathode precursors and materials suitable for new LiB production directly from LiB waste. Unlike traditional hydrometallurgical processes, SHARP eliminates the need for extensive critical metal separation and purification steps.

The benefits of the SHARP technology include:

• High Recovery Rates: >97% recovery of critical metals (Ni, Co, and Li)
• Cost Efficiency vs. Common Processes: 55% lower CAPEX, 45% lower plant footprint, 60% lower reagents/utilities and 52% lower CO2 emissions
• Environmentally friendly: zero liquid discharge, no toxic solid/gas/liquid waste

SHARP has been successfully scaled up, and its products have undergone rigorous evaluation. Results demonstrate that the materials produced perform on par with pristine materials in battery applications, confirming their suitability for high-performance lithium-ion batteries.