US scientists manage major breakthrough by recovering 99.79% pure lithium from spent EV batteries
Published on Sep 25, 2025 at 8:42 AM (UTC+4)
by Molly Davidson
Last updated on Sep 25, 2025 at 12:19 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
US scientists say they’ve just hit a turning point for EV batteries.
A Massachusetts team has fixed one of the trickiest clashes inside next-gen batteries – the parts that carry power and the lithium they touch never got along.
At the same time, they’ve cooked up a recycling trick that takes old battery leftovers and turns them into fresh material that’s almost perfectly pure.
Together, the two wins point to batteries that are cheaper, safer, and built to last a lot longer.
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Making solid-state batteries actually work
The research comes from Worcester Polytechnic Institute, where Professor Yan Wang’s crew went after a flaw that has blocked solid batteries from taking off.
These batteries don’t use the sloshy liquid you find in today’s EVs.
Instead, they swap it for a solid layer that’s supposed to be safer and more stable.
The catch?
That solid layer and the lithium side of the battery don’t like touching each other.
They react, they break down, and the battery fails.
Engineers usually throw in an extra protective sheet to keep them apart, but that makes the whole thing more expensive and harder to build.
Wang’s team tried something different.
They added a pinch of iron into the solid layer.
Suddenly, it could sit right against the lithium without melting down.
No extra sheet needed.
The tests looked promising.
The batteries kept 80 percent of their power even after 300 charges.
In another trial, they ran for over 500 hours straight without falling apart.
Researchers say it’s the first time anyone’s shown this kind of stability, and it could finally make solid batteries simple enough to build for real cars.
The breakthrough in pure lithium recycling for EV batteries
The same group also looked at what happens when a battery dies.
Normally, the lithium parts are too unstable to reuse, so they’re thrown out or wasted.
The WPI crew found a way to flip that script.
They dipped the old lithium into acetone and kicked off a reaction that turned it into lithium carbonate.
The crazy part?
It came out 99.79 percent pure.
That’s cleaner than the fresh stuff pulled out of mines.
And they didn’t stop there.
They built new battery pieces out of the recycled material and tested them against commercial ones.
The performance was basically identical.
That proves it’s possible to close the recycling loop.
Yesterday’s battery waste turning into tomorrow’s power source.
The impact is clear.
Less mining, lower costs, a cleaner supply chain.
Or as Wang put it, they turned a safety hazard into a recovery tool.
From stronger solid batteries to lithium that’s purer than new, WPI’s work could change how EV batteries are built and how they’re brought back to life.
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Molly Davidson is a Junior Content Writer at Supercar Blondie. Based in Melbourne, she holds a double Bachelor’s degree in Arts/Law from Swinburne University and a Master’s of Writing and Publishing from RMIT. Molly has contributed to a range of magazines and journals, developing a strong interest in lifestyle and car news content. When she’s not writing, she’s spending quality time with her rescue English staffy, Boof.
