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Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling in India: Turning Black Mass into a New Industrial Revolution
- Aseem Trivedi
- Nov 3
- 10 min read
On the outskirts of Delhi, inside a logistics yard, hundreds of lithium-ion battery packs lie stacked in silence. Once they powered electric vehicles through the city’s smog and traffic. Today they sit idle, too depleted to drive a motor, too valuable to discard.
Each pack represents a choice that India must now make. Do we send these units to informal scrap yards and risk losing the metals inside? Or do we turn them into a domestic supply of critical mineral such as cobalt, nickel, and lithium that fuels the next generation of energy storage?
This is the moment when battery recycling stops being a side industry and becomes a pillar of national strategy. (For a global view of why critical minerals define this century, read The Global Puzzle: A World Built on Critical Minerals.)
Inside a Lithium-Ion Battery: Anatomy and the Root of the Recycling Challenge
A lithium-ion battery is a small universe of materials working together, and understanding it is key to efficient battery recycling in India. Inside each cell, a lithium-rich metal oxide cathode faces a graphite anode, separated by a thin, porous membrane filled with electrolyte. Lithium is used because it is the lightest solid metal and has a very high electrochemical potential. This allows the battery to store more energy and charge or discharge quickly.
Graphite is chosen for the anode because its layers let lithium ions slide in and out easily, a process called intercalation. This movement can repeat thousands of times without breaking the structure, giving the battery long life and stability.
The cathode usually contains transition metals such as nickel, cobalt, and manganese. Nickel increases energy density and helps control heat. Cobalt keeps the crystal structure stable, and manganese improves safety and strength. Copper and aluminum act as conductors, carrying current from the anode and cathode. Together, these materials create the smooth flow of ions and electrons that powers electric vehicles, smartphones, and tools.
When many of these cells are linked into a module or pack, they become the beating heart of an electric vehicle or an energy-storage system. Yet batteries do not die in a moment, they fade slowly, losing a little strength with every charge and discharge. Over thousands of cycles, heat, depth of discharge, and chemical wear gradually reduce their capacity.
Engineers track this decline through a measure called state of health (SoH). When SoH slips to about 70–80 percent of its original value, the pack has reached the end of its first life. Lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) cells often endure longer than nickel-rich chemistries such as NMC or NCA, but all eventually face the same choice: a second life or the recycling line.
At this point, each pack is assessed carefully. If it still holds enough charge and stability, it can serve again in stationary energy storage, balancing solar or wind power. If not, it is dismantled and recycled, allowing its lithium, nickel, and cobalt to be recovered for the next generation of cells. (For insight into India’s evolving critical mineral policy, see India’s Route to Critical Mineral Self-Reliance.)
What Happens to Dead Batteries?
End-of-life batteries are not waste; they are misplaced resources. When a pack’s state of health drops to about 70 to 80 percent, it often becomes unsuitable for traction but can still serve in low-demand grid or backup storage after proper testing. If diagnostics reveal poor performance, safety risks, or high repair costs, the battery should move to material recovery rather than remain in service.
In India, this routing now sits inside a formal system. The Battery Waste Management Rules 2022 created an Extended Producer Responsibility framework and a centralized CPCB portal for registering producers, refurbishers, and recyclers, tracking collections, and exchanging EPR credits. Licensed networks for collection, transport, and treatment are expanding under these rules.
At end of life, each battery faces three paths. It can be reused if it still delivers stable power, remanufactured if modules can be repaired and balanced, or recycled when the cells are spent. Recycling recovers lithium, nickel, cobalt, and copper for new batteries, closing the loop and reducing import dependence. (See Urban Mining: How Novasensa Is Turning Trash into Treasure for how material recovery is redefining waste management.)
How Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Works in India
Discharge – Before any dismantling, the battery is fully discharged to remove residual energy. Without this step, even a small short circuit can ignite lithium cells. In newer facilities, the recovered electrical energy is sometimes captured and reused for internal power needs, improving process efficiency.
Depack – Trained technicians dismantle the battery pack into modules and individual cells. Structural components such as copper, aluminium, and steel are separated for direct recycling through conventional metal routes.
Sorting – Cells are classified by chemistry and condition. Lithium iron phosphate (LFP) is common in electric vehicles and stationary storage, lithium cobalt oxide (LCO) dominates in older smartphones, and nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) or nickel-cobalt-aluminium (NCA) chemistries are used in most modern EV and power-tool batteries. Correct identification ensures the right downstream process.
Mechanical separation – The cells are then shredded under an inert atmosphere (nitrogen or carbon dioxide) to prevent fire and volatile-compound release. A combination of magnetic, air, and density separation techniques divides plastics, aluminium and copper foils, and the fine powder known as black mass. Black mass typically contains lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese, and graphite. Most industrial recycling flowsheets begin with this mechanical pretreatment stage.
Chemical extraction – The black mass proceeds to hydrometallurgical refining, involving steps such as leaching, precipitation, and solvent extraction to separate and purify cobalt, nickel, lithium, and manganese. Properly optimized flowsheets can achieve metal recoveries above 85–95 percent, producing salts or compounds suitable for battery-grade material production.
Outcome: The recovered metals can re-enter the battery manufacturing supply chain, reducing the need for primary mining. Depending on feed chemistry, a tonne of black mass typically contains 250–400 kg of combined high-value metals such as nickel, cobalt, manganese, and lithium.
(To understand why hydrometallurgy is driving this new frontier, see Recycling for Sustainable Growth: Why Hydrometallurgy Is the Future.)
The Chemistry Behind Recovery
There are three main routes for recovering metals from spent lithium-ion batteries:
● Pyrometallurgy – uses high-temperature smelting to melt the active materials and recover a metal alloy. The method is simple and well established but energy-intensive and recovers little or no lithium, since lithium is lost to the slag phase.
● Hydrometallurgy – uses acid leaching, precipitation, and solvent extraction to dissolve and separate metals in liquid form. It operates at lower temperatures, provides high recovery efficiency (typically 85–95 percent) for cobalt, nickel, and manganese, and is readily scalable for urban recycling facilities.
● Direct recycling – the newest approach, aims to preserve the cathode’s crystal structure so that it can be regenerated with minimal chemical processing. It remains at the laboratory and pilot stage but could greatly reduce energy use in the future.
In India, hydrometallurgy is the dominant industrial pathway because it suits small and medium recyclers, offers high metal yields, and consumes far less energy than furnace-based smelting. By integrating solvent extraction (SX) and ion-exchange (IX) steps, these plants can refine nickel and cobalt to battery-grade purity, producing inputs that feed directly back into cell manufacturing and precursor production.
(For an industry overview, see Recycling Revolution: India’s Drive for Critical Mineral Self-Reliance.)
Is Battery Recycling Profitable?
Recycling batteries can be profitable, but only when chemistry and markets align. The value of every used pack begins with its feedstock cost and depends on how efficiently metals like nickel, cobalt, and lithium are recovered and refined. Modern hydrometallurgical plants can achieve 85–95 percent recovery for these metals, but profits still rise and fall with global prices on the LME and lithium indices such as Benchmark Mineral Intelligence.
India’s policy landscape now supports this transition. The Battery Waste Management Rules 2022 created a nationwide Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) system that requires producers to collect and recycle end-of-life batteries, while the CPCB portal tracks recovery and credit trading. In 2024, the government introduced minimum recycled-content mandates, ensuring that recovered metals feed back into new battery production.
At Novasensa, we see recycling not as waste treatment but as resource strategy. The economics of this industry are shifting fast driven by India’s Battery Waste Management Rules 2022, CPCB’s Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) framework, and the Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC) PLI Scheme. Together, these policies are creating a national ecosystem where every gram of lithium, nickel, or cobalt recovered at home reduces dependence on mined imports.
Our work focuses on building hydrometallurgical and solvent extraction platforms capable of recovering over 90 percent of valuable metals from black mass and process scrap. This approach aligns with the government’s new recycled-content mandates, ensuring that recovered materials directly feed back into India’s growing battery manufacturing base.
For Novasensa, recycling is no longer a downstream task—it is a cornerstone of India’s critical mineral self-reliance, where clean technology and circular economics converge.
(For policy connections, see India’s Route to Critical Mineral Self-Reliance.)
What If Lithium-Ion Batteries Aren’t Recycled in India?
Discarded lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) can be highly dangerous. Physically damaged cells may self-ignite, causing fires, while toxic electrolytes can leach into soil and water, leading to environmental contamination. Furthermore, valuable metals such as cobalt, nickel, and lithium, which can be worth thousands of dollars per tonne, are lost permanently when batteries are not recycled.
Each battery that isn’t recycled results in double waste—both in the form of lost materials and increased pollution. For India, with its growing electric vehicle (EV) market, this means millions of tonnes of hazardous waste will accumulate in the future unless the country rapidly scales its battery recycling infrastructure. (To see how recycling redefines waste economics, revisit Urban Mining: How Novasensa Is Turning Trash into Treasure.)
How Many Times Can We Recycle a Battery?
Metals like nickel, cobalt, and copper can be recycled nearly indefinitely. These metals do not lose their chemical identity during reprocessing. However, lithium and graphite are more complex. With each recycling cycle, they degrade slightly, losing some performance. Still, emerging direct-recycling techniques are making it possible to preserve their quality across multiple cycles.
In practice, the primary metallic components of a battery can be reused indefinitely. The true limitation is not the chemistry but the ability to collect and process the materials efficiently. As collection systems and recycling infrastructure improve, more cycles will become feasible.
Global Landscape of Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling and India’s Position
China currently dominates the global lithium-ion battery (LIB) recycling market, accounting for over 70% of the recycling capacity. Companies like GEM and CATL lead this charge with extensive facilities and advanced technologies for metal recovery, including cobalt, nickel, and lithium. The European Union is following close behind, with legislation that mandates 80–90% recovery of critical materials from waste batteries by 2030. This regulatory push aligns with the EU’s broader Circular Economy Action Plan and its Battery Directive to ensure recycled content is used in new batteries.
In comparison, India’s LIB recycling market is smaller but has distinct advantages. The country benefits from lower energy costs for recycling operations, as well as modular hydrometallurgical units that are ideal for smaller-scale, cost-effective processing. These units can be easily scaled and customized to suit India’s diverse waste streams. The growing domestic demand for EVs and stationary storage systems is pushing the need for increased recycling infrastructure and a circular economy.
India, however, faces a challenge. Battery scrap importation is restricted under current regulations, as per the Battery Waste Management Rules 2022. This makes domestic collection and processing of spent batteries essential. For India, the real opportunity lies in turning its internal waste—whether from used EV batteries or manufacturing scrap—into valuable raw materials. This process not only reduces the reliance on foreign mineral imports but also positions India as a geopolitical player in the global battery supply chain. Through EPR compliance and strategic partnerships with process innovators, Indian recyclers are scaling their capacities to meet both domestic and export market demands.
What Happens After Ten Years?
After ten years, most electric vehicle (EV) batteries typically fall below 70% capacity. While they may no longer be suitable for high-performance use, they can still serve in stationary storage systems for renewable energy. These second-life applications allow batteries to store excess solar and wind power, helping stabilize the grid and balance supply during peak demand.
In India, as renewable energy adoption grows, these second-life batteries could play a crucial role in supporting the grid, making energy storage more efficient and reducing reliance on newly mined materials. Advances in automation will help improve the reuse process, allowing batteries to continue serving useful purposes long after their initial deployment in vehicles.
In this future, the "death" of a battery becomes a transition—not the end of its lifecycle. Instead of being discarded, it is given a second life, contributing to the broader goal of a sustainable, circular economy.
(For long-term outlook on recycling-driven growth, see Recycling Revolution: India’s Drive for Critical Mineral Self-Reliance.)
India’s Circular Leap
In the coming decade, lithium-ion battery recycling in India will be central to achieving mineral self-reliance and a cleaner energy future. The government aims for electric vehicles to make up about 30 percent of total vehicle sales by 2030 and for non-fossil power capacity to reach 500 GW. Both targets will sharply raise demand for lithium-ion batteries used in transport and grid storage.
Key steps to enable this transition:
• Designing EV packs for disassembly and traceability: Battery makers will shift to modular, standardized packs with traceable identifiers. These features make dismantling faster and recovery more efficient, supporting India’s circular manufacturing goals.
• Expanding collection networks across statesA strong national system for used-battery collection is vital. Under the Battery Waste Management Rules 2022, producers have mandatory EPR targets for recycling or refurbishment, ensuring that end-of-life batteries reach formal facilities.
• Incentivizing EPR compliance: The EPR framework bans landfill and incineration. Its online exchange system connects producers with registered recyclers, creating a transparent market that rewards verified material recovery (Press Information Bureau).
• Integrating AI-driven sorting and chemical automation: Artificial intelligence and automated hydrometallurgical control can improve recovery efficiency, reduce chemical use, and maintain consistent product quality, critical as recycling volumes grow with EV adoption.
• How recyclers enable this leap: Recyclers convert policy intent into secured domestic supply. Their focus areas include:– Sourcing feedstock through the CPCB EPR portal and producer take-back programs to ensure steady volumes.– Using safe discharge, dismantling, and black-mass standardization to minimize downstream losses.– Running closed-loop hydrometallurgy to produce battery-grade salts and metals ready for new cell manufacturing.– Publishing transparent mass-balance and impurity data to qualify for India’s Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC) programs.
(For the hydrometallurgical foundation behind this shift, refer back to Recycling for Sustainable Growth.)
From Waste to Wealth
India’s energy transition cannot rely on new mineral extraction alone. Developing domestic mines for lithium, nickel, and cobalt is a long and capital-intensive process that can take years before production begins. In contrast, battery recycling offers an immediate and sustainable path where environmental responsibility, economic value, and national interest align. From Delhi’s electric delivery fleets to Rajasthan’s growing EV networks, the second life of batteries is fast becoming a pillar of India’s industrial future.
By scaling lithium-ion battery recycling in India, the nation can transform end-of-life cells into a sustainable source of critical minerals, fueling both industry and innovation. As India expands its recycling capacity, these materials stay within national supply chains, supporting manufacturing and clean-energy growth. The country’s resource independence will come not from extracting more but from reusing smarter, building a circular economy where essential materials never truly “die” but continue to drive innovation and development.
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