Sustainable Recycling of Industrial By-Products and Spent Batteries
A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Green Chemistry".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2026 | Viewed by 7
Special Issue Editors
Interests: hydrometallurgy; mineral processing; metal recovery; battery recycling; sustainable resource recovery
Interests: hydrometallurgy; minerals processing; sustainable recovery; electrowinning
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The Special Issue on "Sustainable Recycling of Industrial By-Products and Spent Batteries" focuses on innovative methods for reclaiming valuable materials from industrial waste and used batteries, aligning with principles of sustainability and the circular economy. The increasing demand for critical metals, such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, and manganese, necessitates the development of efficient recycling strategies to meet the needs of green transitions in transportation and other sectors.
The issue spotlights advances in hydrometallurgy, pyrometallurgy, solvometallurgy, and direct regeneration, with particular focus on solution chemistry, complexation behavior, redox mechanisms, and selective recovery processes. Articles explore the reaction mechanisms, material transformations, and physicochemical interactions that underpin these recycling pathways, as well as green solvents such as deep eutectic solvents (DESs) and bio-based lixiviants.
A strong emphasis of this special issue is placed on the recovery and re-synthesis of cathode materials from spent lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), with discussions on crystallization control, surface passivation, and structure–property relationships in recycled products.
By integrating chemical principles, process design, and sustainability metrics, this issue aims to inspire innovations in circular chemistry and material regeneration for a low-carbon future.
Dr. Jingxiu Wang
Prof. Dr. Herman Potgieter
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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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
- sustainable recycling
- industrial by-products
- spent batteries
- critical metal recovery
- hydrometallurgical processes
- deep eutectic solvents (DESs)
- green extraction technologies
- circular chemistry
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