Selected Papers from Circular Materials Conference 2025

A special issue of Batteries (ISSN 2313-0105).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 17 March 2026 | Viewed by 293

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Kemivägen 4, SE-412 96 Gothenburg, Sweden
Interests: batteries; battery recycling; WEEE& solar module recycling; metal extraction/recovery; supercritical CO2
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Energy and Materials Division, Chalmers University of Technology, Kemivägen 4, SE-412 96 Gothenburg, Sweden
Interests: battery recycling; hydrometallurgy; metal extraction; metal recovery from primary and secondary sources
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The 7th Circular Materials Conference 2025 (15–16 October 2025) provides a unique platform for knowledge exchange, debate, and networking among international key players from academia, industry, and policy. As we navigate the transition towards circular business models and sustainable material flows, this conference offers the opportunity to rethink materials through the lens of emerging technologies and cross-sector collaboration.

This forum welcomes professionals and stakeholders at the forefront of circular innovation. Participants include thought leaders in the circular economy, CEOs, R&D managers, producers, recyclers, collectors, retailers, policy-makers, representatives of global institutions and NGOs, researchers, clean-tech investors, and media professionals.

The conference will explore a wide range of topics within the field of circular materials, including strategies for EV battery recycling, the circular use of photovoltaic (PV) modules, the recovery of metals from secondary sources, and the waste management of municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) ashes. Other areas of focus include circular packaging, the treatment of textiles, and waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE).

Research on the following topics can be submitted to Batteries:

  • EV battery recycling;
  • Sustainable batteries;
  • Future battery recycling technologies. 
  • Research on the following topics can be submitted to Clean Technology:
  • Circular economy strategies;
  • Circular packaging;
  • Plastic circularity;
  • Material circularity and recycling of photovoltaic (PV) modules;
  • Metals and CRM from secondary sources;
  • Waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE);
  • Municipal solid waste incineration and fly ash;
  • Building and construction circularity;
  • Quantifying circular economy via life cycle assessments;
  • Circularity in fiber-reinforced polymer composites;
  • Circular strategies in textile design, reuse, and recycling.

You may choose our Joint Special Issue in Clean Technologies.

Dr. Chuan Wang
Dr. Burçak Ebin
Dr. Martina Petranikova
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Batteries is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • waste management
  • battery recycling
  • direct recovery
  • circular materials
  • metal extraction
  • plastic recovery
  • textile recycling
  • second life
  • circular economy
  • LCA

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

15 pages, 1712 KB  
Article
Li-Ion Battery Recycling via High-Intensity Milling Followed by Organic Acid Leaching for Preferential Lithium Extraction
by Brenda Segura-Bailón, Léa Rouquette, Nathália Vieceli, Karolina Bogusz, Cécile Moreau and Martina Petranikova
Batteries 2025, 11(12), 458; https://doi.org/10.3390/batteries11120458 - 12 Dec 2025
Viewed by 73
Abstract
Nowadays, spent batteries are considered a secondary and potential resource to meet the growing demand for lithium, a critical element widely used in the manufacturing of electric vehicles. Therefore, this work presents a hydrometallurgical method for extracting lithium from Nickel–Manganese–Cobalt (NMC) batteries. Citric [...] Read more.
Nowadays, spent batteries are considered a secondary and potential resource to meet the growing demand for lithium, a critical element widely used in the manufacturing of electric vehicles. Therefore, this work presents a hydrometallurgical method for extracting lithium from Nickel–Manganese–Cobalt (NMC) batteries. Citric (C6H8O7) and oxalic (C2H2O4) acids were used as leaching agents, both of which are cataloged as environmentally friendly organic compounds. To comprehend the chemical interactions between citrate (cit), oxalate (ox) and metallic ions, a thermodynamic analysis is presented. According to this analysis, both ions were effective in dissolving lithium; however, the experimental studies demonstrated that oxalate ensured a selective process and achieved complete lithium dissolution under the experimental conditions 1 M C2H2O4, 50 g/L, 60 °C, and 60 min, with a mechanically treated sample (milling time 8 min at 1000 rpm). In this process, the other metals present in the sample, such as cobalt, nickel, and manganese, formed insoluble species with oxalate, allowing their recovery in subsequent stages. Therefore, this investigation provides a proficient methodology for battery recycling, emphasizing sustainable practices. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Selected Papers from Circular Materials Conference 2025)
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