WO2024115879A1 - Recyclage de membrane usagée comprenant un ionomère fluoré - Google Patents
Recyclage de membrane usagée comprenant un ionomère fluoré Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- WO2024115879A1 WO2024115879A1 PCT/GB2023/053009 GB2023053009W WO2024115879A1 WO 2024115879 A1 WO2024115879 A1 WO 2024115879A1 GB 2023053009 W GB2023053009 W GB 2023053009W WO 2024115879 A1 WO2024115879 A1 WO 2024115879A1
- Authority
- WO
- WIPO (PCT)
- Prior art keywords
- membrane
- ionomer
- waste
- solvent
- catalyst
- Prior art date
Links
- 229920000554 ionomer Polymers 0.000 title claims abstract description 235
- 239000012528 membrane Substances 0.000 title claims abstract description 163
- 239000002699 waste material Substances 0.000 title claims abstract description 111
- 238000004064 recycling Methods 0.000 title claims abstract description 39
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 claims abstract description 139
- 239000002904 solvent Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 87
- 239000002612 dispersion medium Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 65
- YCKRFDGAMUMZLT-UHFFFAOYSA-N Fluorine atom Chemical compound [F] YCKRFDGAMUMZLT-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims abstract description 42
- 239000011737 fluorine Substances 0.000 claims abstract description 42
- 229910052731 fluorine Inorganic materials 0.000 claims abstract description 42
- 239000003054 catalyst Substances 0.000 claims description 298
- 239000000463 material Substances 0.000 claims description 83
- 239000006185 dispersion Substances 0.000 claims description 47
- LFQSCWFLJHTTHZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N Ethanol Chemical compound CCO LFQSCWFLJHTTHZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 43
- XLYOFNOQVPJJNP-UHFFFAOYSA-N water Substances O XLYOFNOQVPJJNP-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 41
- 239000000203 mixture Substances 0.000 claims description 33
- 239000002002 slurry Substances 0.000 claims description 31
- 239000007787 solid Substances 0.000 claims description 30
- OKTJSMMVPCPJKN-UHFFFAOYSA-N Carbon Chemical compound [C] OKTJSMMVPCPJKN-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 21
- 229910052751 metal Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 21
- 239000002184 metal Substances 0.000 claims description 21
- 239000003463 adsorbent Substances 0.000 claims description 15
- 238000001914 filtration Methods 0.000 claims description 12
- 239000000446 fuel Substances 0.000 claims description 12
- PXHVJJICTQNCMI-UHFFFAOYSA-N Nickel Chemical compound [Ni] PXHVJJICTQNCMI-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 9
- XEEYBQQBJWHFJM-UHFFFAOYSA-N Iron Chemical compound [Fe] XEEYBQQBJWHFJM-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 6
- 150000001768 cations Chemical class 0.000 claims description 6
- 238000000108 ultra-filtration Methods 0.000 claims description 6
- NWUYHJFMYQTDRP-UHFFFAOYSA-N 1,2-bis(ethenyl)benzene;1-ethenyl-2-ethylbenzene;styrene Chemical compound C=CC1=CC=CC=C1.CCC1=CC=CC=C1C=C.C=CC1=CC=CC=C1C=C NWUYHJFMYQTDRP-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 5
- 239000007864 aqueous solution Substances 0.000 claims description 5
- 238000009295 crossflow filtration Methods 0.000 claims description 5
- 239000012500 ion exchange media Substances 0.000 claims description 5
- 239000003456 ion exchange resin Substances 0.000 claims description 5
- 229920003303 ion-exchange polymer Polymers 0.000 claims description 5
- 239000003729 cation exchange resin Substances 0.000 claims description 4
- 229910052759 nickel Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 4
- 150000002894 organic compounds Chemical class 0.000 claims description 4
- VYZAMTAEIAYCRO-UHFFFAOYSA-N Chromium Chemical compound [Cr] VYZAMTAEIAYCRO-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 3
- RYGMFSIKBFXOCR-UHFFFAOYSA-N Copper Chemical compound [Cu] RYGMFSIKBFXOCR-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 claims description 3
- KRHYYFGTRYWZRS-UHFFFAOYSA-M Fluoride anion Chemical compound [F-] KRHYYFGTRYWZRS-UHFFFAOYSA-M 0.000 claims description 3
- 125000000129 anionic group Chemical group 0.000 claims description 3
- 150000001875 compounds Chemical class 0.000 claims description 3
- 229910052802 copper Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 3
- 239000010949 copper Substances 0.000 claims description 3
- 229910052742 iron Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 3
- 239000010410 layer Substances 0.000 description 188
- BASFCYQUMIYNBI-UHFFFAOYSA-N platinum Chemical group [Pt] BASFCYQUMIYNBI-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 94
- 229910052697 platinum Inorganic materials 0.000 description 40
- 229910052741 iridium Inorganic materials 0.000 description 33
- LRHPLDYGYMQRHN-UHFFFAOYSA-N N-Butanol Chemical compound CCCCO LRHPLDYGYMQRHN-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 27
- GKOZUEZYRPOHIO-UHFFFAOYSA-N iridium atom Chemical compound [Ir] GKOZUEZYRPOHIO-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 27
- KDLHZDBZIXYQEI-UHFFFAOYSA-N Palladium Chemical compound [Pd] KDLHZDBZIXYQEI-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 21
- BDERNNFJNOPAEC-UHFFFAOYSA-N propan-1-ol Chemical compound CCCO BDERNNFJNOPAEC-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 21
- 238000002386 leaching Methods 0.000 description 20
- 239000000243 solution Substances 0.000 description 19
- 238000000926 separation method Methods 0.000 description 18
- 230000032798 delamination Effects 0.000 description 17
- 238000004519 manufacturing process Methods 0.000 description 16
- 229910052707 ruthenium Inorganic materials 0.000 description 13
- OKKJLVBELUTLKV-UHFFFAOYSA-N Methanol Chemical compound OC OKKJLVBELUTLKV-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 12
- KJTLSVCANCCWHF-UHFFFAOYSA-N Ruthenium Chemical compound [Ru] KJTLSVCANCCWHF-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 11
- 229910052763 palladium Inorganic materials 0.000 description 11
- 238000011084 recovery Methods 0.000 description 11
- KFZMGEQAYNKOFK-UHFFFAOYSA-N Isopropanol Chemical compound CC(C)O KFZMGEQAYNKOFK-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 10
- 239000002253 acid Substances 0.000 description 10
- 230000001590 oxidative effect Effects 0.000 description 10
- 206010011906 Death Diseases 0.000 description 9
- 238000010438 heat treatment Methods 0.000 description 9
- UFHFLCQGNIYNRP-UHFFFAOYSA-N Hydrogen Chemical compound [H][H] UFHFLCQGNIYNRP-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 8
- 239000001257 hydrogen Substances 0.000 description 8
- 229910052739 hydrogen Inorganic materials 0.000 description 8
- 230000002829 reductive effect Effects 0.000 description 8
- 239000007788 liquid Substances 0.000 description 7
- 239000007800 oxidant agent Substances 0.000 description 7
- 238000007670 refining Methods 0.000 description 7
- 230000002378 acidificating effect Effects 0.000 description 6
- 229910052799 carbon Inorganic materials 0.000 description 6
- 238000005119 centrifugation Methods 0.000 description 6
- HTXDPTMKBJXEOW-UHFFFAOYSA-N dioxoiridium Chemical compound O=[Ir]=O HTXDPTMKBJXEOW-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 6
- UQSQSQZYBQSBJZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N fluorosulfonic acid Chemical compound OS(F)(=O)=O UQSQSQZYBQSBJZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 6
- 229910000457 iridium oxide Inorganic materials 0.000 description 6
- 239000000843 powder Substances 0.000 description 6
- 238000006722 reduction reaction Methods 0.000 description 6
- 150000003839 salts Chemical class 0.000 description 6
- 150000001298 alcohols Chemical class 0.000 description 5
- 239000010953 base metal Substances 0.000 description 5
- 238000005516 engineering process Methods 0.000 description 5
- 230000009931 harmful effect Effects 0.000 description 5
- 239000012535 impurity Substances 0.000 description 5
- -1 platinum group metals Chemical class 0.000 description 5
- 229920005597 polymer membrane Polymers 0.000 description 5
- 239000011347 resin Substances 0.000 description 5
- 229920005989 resin Polymers 0.000 description 5
- ZAMOUSCENKQFHK-UHFFFAOYSA-N Chlorine atom Chemical compound [Cl] ZAMOUSCENKQFHK-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 4
- OAKJQQAXSVQMHS-UHFFFAOYSA-N Hydrazine Chemical compound NN OAKJQQAXSVQMHS-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 4
- VEXZGXHMUGYJMC-UHFFFAOYSA-N Hydrochloric acid Chemical compound Cl VEXZGXHMUGYJMC-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 4
- VYPSYNLAJGMNEJ-UHFFFAOYSA-N Silicium dioxide Chemical compound O=[Si]=O VYPSYNLAJGMNEJ-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 4
- 230000001476 alcoholic effect Effects 0.000 description 4
- 238000013459 approach Methods 0.000 description 4
- 125000002091 cationic group Chemical group 0.000 description 4
- 239000000460 chlorine Substances 0.000 description 4
- 229910052801 chlorine Inorganic materials 0.000 description 4
- 238000005520 cutting process Methods 0.000 description 4
- 238000004821 distillation Methods 0.000 description 4
- 238000005342 ion exchange Methods 0.000 description 4
- IAZDPXIOMUYVGZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N Dimethylsulphoxide Chemical compound CS(C)=O IAZDPXIOMUYVGZ-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 3
- LYCAIKOWRPUZTN-UHFFFAOYSA-N Ethylene glycol Chemical compound OCCO LYCAIKOWRPUZTN-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 3
- 238000013019 agitation Methods 0.000 description 3
- 239000003638 chemical reducing agent Substances 0.000 description 3
- 239000000356 contaminant Substances 0.000 description 3
- 239000007789 gas Substances 0.000 description 3
- 239000003960 organic solvent Substances 0.000 description 3
- XTEGARKTQYYJKE-UHFFFAOYSA-M Chlorate Chemical compound [O-]Cl(=O)=O XTEGARKTQYYJKE-UHFFFAOYSA-M 0.000 description 2
- ZMXDDKWLCZADIW-UHFFFAOYSA-N N,N-Dimethylformamide Chemical compound CN(C)C=O ZMXDDKWLCZADIW-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 2
- SECXISVLQFMRJM-UHFFFAOYSA-N N-Methylpyrrolidone Chemical compound CN1CCCC1=O SECXISVLQFMRJM-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 2
- 229910002837 PtCo Inorganic materials 0.000 description 2
- QVGXLLKOCUKJST-UHFFFAOYSA-N atomic oxygen Chemical compound [O] QVGXLLKOCUKJST-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 2
- 239000012141 concentrate Substances 0.000 description 2
- 229920001940 conductive polymer Polymers 0.000 description 2
- 230000009615 deamination Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000006481 deamination reaction Methods 0.000 description 2
- 150000002009 diols Chemical class 0.000 description 2
- 230000000694 effects Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000000605 extraction Methods 0.000 description 2
- 239000011521 glass Substances 0.000 description 2
- 239000000976 ink Substances 0.000 description 2
- VRIVJOXICYMTAG-IYEMJOQQSA-L iron(ii) gluconate Chemical compound [Fe+2].OC[C@@H](O)[C@@H](O)[C@H](O)[C@@H](O)C([O-])=O.OC[C@@H](O)[C@@H](O)[C@H](O)[C@@H](O)C([O-])=O VRIVJOXICYMTAG-IYEMJOQQSA-L 0.000 description 2
- 229910001512 metal fluoride Inorganic materials 0.000 description 2
- 238000002156 mixing Methods 0.000 description 2
- 238000007254 oxidation reaction Methods 0.000 description 2
- 239000001301 oxygen Substances 0.000 description 2
- 229910052760 oxygen Inorganic materials 0.000 description 2
- 229920000642 polymer Polymers 0.000 description 2
- 239000010970 precious metal Substances 0.000 description 2
- 238000003672 processing method Methods 0.000 description 2
- 239000000047 product Substances 0.000 description 2
- 230000006798 recombination Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000005215 recombination Methods 0.000 description 2
- 239000010948 rhodium Substances 0.000 description 2
- 239000000377 silicon dioxide Substances 0.000 description 2
- 238000005549 size reduction Methods 0.000 description 2
- 239000000758 substrate Substances 0.000 description 2
- 238000002525 ultrasonication Methods 0.000 description 2
- MGRVRXRGTBOSHW-UHFFFAOYSA-N (aminomethyl)phosphonic acid Chemical group NCP(O)(O)=O MGRVRXRGTBOSHW-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- NLMDJJTUQPXZFG-UHFFFAOYSA-N 1,4,10,13-tetraoxa-7,16-diazacyclooctadecane Chemical compound C1COCCOCCNCCOCCOCCN1 NLMDJJTUQPXZFG-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- BZSXEZOLBIJVQK-UHFFFAOYSA-N 2-methylsulfonylbenzoic acid Chemical compound CS(=O)(=O)C1=CC=CC=C1C(O)=O BZSXEZOLBIJVQK-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- KZBUYRJDOAKODT-UHFFFAOYSA-N Chlorine Chemical compound ClCl KZBUYRJDOAKODT-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- GRYLNZFGIOXLOG-UHFFFAOYSA-N Nitric acid Chemical compound O[N+]([O-])=O GRYLNZFGIOXLOG-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 229910019142 PO4 Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 101150060820 Pfas gene Proteins 0.000 description 1
- QCWXUUIWCKQGHC-UHFFFAOYSA-N Zirconium Chemical compound [Zr] QCWXUUIWCKQGHC-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 239000003929 acidic solution Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229910045601 alloy Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 239000000956 alloy Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000004411 aluminium Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229910052782 aluminium Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- XAGFODPZIPBFFR-UHFFFAOYSA-N aluminium Chemical compound [Al] XAGFODPZIPBFFR-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- VBIXEXWLHSRNKB-UHFFFAOYSA-N ammonium oxalate Chemical compound [NH4+].[NH4+].[O-]C(=O)C([O-])=O VBIXEXWLHSRNKB-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 239000003957 anion exchange resin Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000000712 assembly Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000000429 assembly Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000012298 atmosphere Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229910052916 barium silicate Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- HMOQPOVBDRFNIU-UHFFFAOYSA-N barium(2+);dioxido(oxo)silane Chemical compound [Ba+2].[O-][Si]([O-])=O HMOQPOVBDRFNIU-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 230000033228 biological regulation Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000015572 biosynthetic process Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000009835 boiling Methods 0.000 description 1
- 150000001735 carboxylic acids Chemical class 0.000 description 1
- 229920001429 chelating resin Polymers 0.000 description 1
- XTEGARKTQYYJKE-UHFFFAOYSA-N chloric acid Chemical class OCl(=O)=O XTEGARKTQYYJKE-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 229910017052 cobalt Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 239000010941 cobalt Substances 0.000 description 1
- GUTLYIVDDKVIGB-UHFFFAOYSA-N cobalt atom Chemical compound [Co] GUTLYIVDDKVIGB-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 239000002322 conducting polymer Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000011109 contamination Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000002739 cryptand Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000008367 deionised water Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229910021641 deionized water Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 230000001066 destructive effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000009792 diffusion process Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000004090 dissolution Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000001035 drying Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000005868 electrolysis reaction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000007613 environmental effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000002360 explosive Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000000706 filtrate Substances 0.000 description 1
- 150000004673 fluoride salts Chemical class 0.000 description 1
- 229920002313 fluoropolymer Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 238000009472 formulation Methods 0.000 description 1
- 125000000524 functional group Chemical group 0.000 description 1
- 238000001027 hydrothermal synthesis Methods 0.000 description 1
- NBZBKCUXIYYUSX-UHFFFAOYSA-N iminodiacetic acid Chemical compound OC(=O)CNCC(O)=O NBZBKCUXIYYUSX-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 238000007654 immersion Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000011065 in-situ storage Methods 0.000 description 1
- 150000002500 ions Chemical group 0.000 description 1
- 150000002576 ketones Chemical class 0.000 description 1
- 239000002346 layers by function Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000003446 ligand Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000005374 membrane filtration Methods 0.000 description 1
- 229910001092 metal group alloy Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 229910021645 metal ion Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 229910044991 metal oxide Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 150000004706 metal oxides Chemical class 0.000 description 1
- 229910017604 nitric acid Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 239000011368 organic material Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000003647 oxidation Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000002245 particle Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229920011301 perfluoro alkoxyl alkane Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 150000002978 peroxides Chemical class 0.000 description 1
- 230000002688 persistence Effects 0.000 description 1
- NBIIXXVUZAFLBC-UHFFFAOYSA-K phosphate Chemical compound [O-]P([O-])([O-])=O NBIIXXVUZAFLBC-UHFFFAOYSA-K 0.000 description 1
- 239000010452 phosphate Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000009255 platelet function activity Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000002243 precursor Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000000746 purification Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000000197 pyrolysis Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000003908 quality control method Methods 0.000 description 1
- 125000001453 quaternary ammonium group Chemical group 0.000 description 1
- 239000002516 radical scavenger Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000002787 reinforcement Effects 0.000 description 1
- 229910052703 rhodium Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- MHOVAHRLVXNVSD-UHFFFAOYSA-N rhodium atom Chemical compound [Rh] MHOVAHRLVXNVSD-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 238000013341 scale-up Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000005368 silicate glass Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000012279 sodium borohydride Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229910000033 sodium borohydride Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 239000011949 solid catalyst Substances 0.000 description 1
- 125000000542 sulfonic acid group Chemical group 0.000 description 1
- 239000006228 supernatant Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000010409 thin film Substances 0.000 description 1
- 231100000331 toxic Toxicity 0.000 description 1
- 230000002588 toxic effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000002341 toxic gas Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000010887 waste solvent Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229910052726 zirconium Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
Classifications
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
- C08J—WORKING-UP; GENERAL PROCESSES OF COMPOUNDING; AFTER-TREATMENT NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C08B, C08C, C08F, C08G or C08H
- C08J11/00—Recovery or working-up of waste materials
- C08J11/04—Recovery or working-up of waste materials of polymers
- C08J11/06—Recovery or working-up of waste materials of polymers without chemical reactions
- C08J11/08—Recovery or working-up of waste materials of polymers without chemical reactions using selective solvents for polymer components
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
- B29B—PREPARATION OR PRETREATMENT OF THE MATERIAL TO BE SHAPED; MAKING GRANULES OR PREFORMS; RECOVERY OF PLASTICS OR OTHER CONSTITUENTS OF WASTE MATERIAL CONTAINING PLASTICS
- B29B17/00—Recovery of plastics or other constituents of waste material containing plastics
- B29B17/02—Separating plastics from other materials
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
- C08J—WORKING-UP; GENERAL PROCESSES OF COMPOUNDING; AFTER-TREATMENT NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C08B, C08C, C08F, C08G or C08H
- C08J11/00—Recovery or working-up of waste materials
- C08J11/04—Recovery or working-up of waste materials of polymers
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C08—ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON
- C08J—WORKING-UP; GENERAL PROCESSES OF COMPOUNDING; AFTER-TREATMENT NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES C08B, C08C, C08F, C08G or C08H
- C08J11/00—Recovery or working-up of waste materials
- C08J11/04—Recovery or working-up of waste materials of polymers
- C08J11/06—Recovery or working-up of waste materials of polymers without chemical reactions
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
- C22B—PRODUCTION AND REFINING OF METALS; PRETREATMENT OF RAW MATERIALS
- C22B11/00—Obtaining noble metals
-
- C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
- C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
- C22B—PRODUCTION AND REFINING OF METALS; PRETREATMENT OF RAW MATERIALS
- C22B7/00—Working up raw materials other than ores, e.g. scrap, to produce non-ferrous metals and compounds thereof; Methods of a general interest or applied to the winning of more than two metals
Definitions
- This specification relates to recycling methods for components of catalyst coated membranes such as those used in fuel cells and hydrogen producing water electrolysers.
- CCMs Catalyst coated membranes
- Such CCMs generally comprise a conductive polymer membrane coated on either side by a catalyst containing layer.
- the CCMs are configured to drive oxidation and reduction reactions and support proton and electron transport, these processes been required for the fuel cell and electrolyser technologies to function.
- CCM component materials and configurations exist according to functional performance requirements in end use applications, they generally contain several components of value including one or more platinum group metal (PGM) catalysts and one or more proton conducting polymers.
- PGM platinum group metal
- the membrane is formed of one or more ionomers such as perfluorosulfonic-acid (PFSA) ionomers.
- Ionomer may also be provided in one or both of the catalyst layers.
- the ionomer in the catalyst layers may be the same or different to the ionomer in the main membrane component and/or in other catalyst layer(s).
- a CCM may comprise two different catalysts, one for driving an oxidation reaction on one side of the CCM and one for driving a reduction reaction on the other side of the CCM.
- a CCM may also comprise a recombination catalyst which is provided to catalyse the recombination of hydrogen and oxygen to form water, reducing the quantity of hydrogen crossing the membrane and mixing with oxygen to form a potentially explosive mixture.
- a CCM may also include a multivalent cation delivered as a salt or oxide (supported or unsupported) as a peroxide scavenger, e.g., a metal oxide such as CeCh.
- CCM catalysts can be based on platinum group metals such as platinum, ruthenium, iridium, palladium, or mixtures thereof.
- the platinum group metals may be provided in elemental (metallic) form, in compound form (e.g., an oxide, such as an iridium oxide catalyst), or as a PGM-base metal alloy (e.g., PtCo).
- the PGM catalyst materials may be supported on a substrate material, such as a carbonaceous substrate material (e.g., carbon, such as a platinum-on-carbon catalyst comprising particles of carbon on which platinum is disposed or PtCo-on-carbon, or an organic material, e.g., nanostructured thin film catalyst (NTFC) technology as described in US2020102659 and W02006089180).
- a carbonaceous substrate material e.g., carbon, such as a platinum-on-carbon catalyst comprising particles of carbon on which platinum is disposed or PtCo-on-carbon
- organic material e.g., nanostructured thin film catalyst (NTFC) technology as described in US2020102659 and W02006089180.
- CCMs Catalyst coated membranes
- MEAs multi-layer membrane electrode assemblies
- Such MEAs may have 3, 5, or 7 layers for example.
- CCM waste materials including a significant volume of scrap material created during CCM manufacture (e.g., due to failure at quality control) and also an increase in end-of-life (EoL) CCMs.
- CCMs contain several components which are rare and/or valuable, including platinum group metals (notably Pt, Pd, Ir and Ru) and ionomer (both in the membrane and catalyst layers), there is a growing demand for methods of recycling such components from waste CCM materials.
- the incineration method destroys the ionomer component which also has significant value.
- Processes for recovering perfluorosulphonic acid ionomer are known. See, for example, WO2016/156815 and US7255798.
- processes for recovering individual PGM catalyst components are known. See, for example, US7709135.
- EP3275036 discloses a method comprising: immersing a CCM in a diol solvent; heating to obtain a dispersion comprising solvent, one or more ionomers, and one or more catalyst components; and filtering the dispersion to separate the solvent and the one or more ionomers from the one of more catalyst components.
- a paper entitled “PEM water electrolysis: innovative approaches towards catalyst separation, recovery and recycling” discloses a method of recycling a CCM to recover membrane ionomer, iridium oxide catalyst and Pt/C catalyst. This is achieved by mounting the CCM across a reactor so as to define two separate chambers, one on the iridium oxide side of the CCM and one on the Pt/C side of the CCM. Both sides of the CCM are then separately subjected to a circulation of a solution consisting of deionized water and alcohol. It is described that complete delamination of the catalyst layers from the membrane occurs after 10-30 minutes. After delamination the membrane is dried, re-used or reprocessed.
- the two separate dispersions comprising the catalyst residues are centrifuged and the solids collected and dried in an oven to yield recycled iridium oxide catalyst powder and recycled Pt/C catalyst powder.
- the recycled catalyst powders are used to fabricate new CCMs. It is disclosed that the temperature used when drying the recycled catalysts was not high enough to burn off ionomer in the catalyst powders and it is indicated that the ionomer present when re-using the catalyst powders in new ink formulations may be responsible for increased cell voltages (reduced performance) in CCMs manufactured using the recycled catalyst materials.
- CN106898790 also discloses a method in which the catalyst layers are delaminated from the membrane using an alcohol-water mixture and then the solid membrane is separated from the catalyst layer dispersion. The catalyst layer dispersion and the solid membrane are then processed and recycled separately.
- the catalyst layer dispersion is processed by heating to a sufficient temperature to burn off the catalyst layer ionomer and then heated further under higher temperatures to remove carbon and retrieve precious metal catalyst.
- a method of recycling waste membrane comprising fluorinated ionomer comprising: dispersing the fluorinated ionomer from the waste membrane in a solvent (which bay be selected from water, an alkaline aqueous solution, or a water / alcohol mixture); separating the fluorinated ionomer from the solvent, wherein after separating the fluorinated ionomer, the solvent is in the form of a waste dispersion media comprising the solvent and fluorine containing species in the solvent (e.g., soluble fluorine containing organic compounds dissolved in the solvent, soluble ionic fluoride species dissolved in the solvent, and/or insoluble fluorine containing compounds dispersed in the solvent such as insoluble metal fluoride salts); and treating the waste dispersion media to reduce the concentration of fluorine containing species in the solvent.
- a solvent which bay be selected from water, an alkaline aqueous solution, or a water / alcohol mixture
- waste dispersion media processing method After treatment of the waste dispersion media to reduce the concentration of fluorine containing species in the solvent, the solvent can be safely discarded or recycled for re-use in processing further waste membrane material.
- the advantages of this waste dispersion media processing method include a reduction of emissions resulting from the recycling of ionomers from production scrap and/or end- of-life fuel cell and/or water electrolyser CCM components. Reduction in water consumption is also advantageous.
- the treatment of the waste dispersion media may comprise one or more of the following steps to reduce the concentration of fluorine containing species in the solvent: contacting the waste dispersion media with a solid adsorbent; contacting the waste dispersion media with one or more ion exchange media; filtering the waste dispersion media.
- the waste dispersion media may be contacted with an adsorbent such as activated charcoal, a cationic ion exchange resin, an anionic ion exchange resin, or a combination of said media.
- the treatment of the waste dispersion media may also reduce the concentration of residual metal cations in the solvent such as one or more of iron, nickel, copper, and chrome.
- the waste dispersion media can be subjected to crossflow filtration or ultrafiltration, e.g., prior to contacting the waste dispersion media with an adsorbent and/or ion exchange media. This can aid to concentrate the fluorine containing impurities prior to the capture and disposal of these impurities.
- the waste membrane may be from a fuel cell or water electrolyser component (either manufacturing scrap or end-of-life material).
- the waste membrane can be a waste catalyst coated membrane comprising a membrane including a membrane ionomer, a first catalyst layer disposed on one side of the membrane, the first catalyst layer comprising a first catalyst and a first catalyst layer ionomer, and a second catalyst layer disposed on an opposite side of the membrane, the second catalyst layer comprising a second catalyst and a second catalyst layer ionomer.
- the waste dispersion media is generated from a dispersion of at least one of the membrane ionomer, the first catalyst layer ionomer, and the second catalyst layer ionomer.
- the method comprises contacting the waste catalyst coated membrane with a solvent to delaminate both of the first and second catalyst layers from the membrane without dispersing the membrane, wherein the first and second catalyst layers form a catalyst layer slurry comprising the first catalyst, the first catalyst layer ionomer, the second catalyst, and the second catalyst layer ionomer.
- the membrane can be separated from the catalyst layer slurry and processed to disperse and recover the membrane ionomer.
- the catalyst layer slurry can be processed to disperse and recover the first and second catalyst layer ionomers, and separate and recover the first and second catalysts or components thereof.
- processing of the membrane generates a first waste dispersion media comprising a first solvent and fluorine containing species in the first solvent, and the first waste dispersion media is treated to reduce the concentration of fluorine containing species in the first solvent.
- processing of the catalyst layer slurry generates a second waste dispersion media comprising a second solvent and fluorine containing species in the second solvent, and the second waste dispersion media is also treated to reduce the concentration of fluorine containing species in the second solvent.
- the first and second waste dispersion media can be combined prior to treatment in order to reduce the concentration of fluorine containing species (e.g., if the first and second solvents are the same).
- the first and second waste dispersion media can be treated separately in order to reduce the concentration of fluorine containing species (e.g., if the first and second solvents are different).
- the two different solvents can be separately recycled and re-used in the process.
- Figure 1 shows a waste CCM recycling process wherein the catalyst layers are first separated from the bulk polymer membrane (noting that gas diffusion layer(s) and seal(s) can be removed prior to treatment of the waste CCM);
- Figure 2 shows a method of further processing the catalyst layer material
- Figure 3 shows an alternative method of further processing the catalyst layer material
- Figure 4 shows: (a) a catalyst coated membrane subjected to size reduction (cutting) and immersion in an alcohokwater mixture (left hand image); (b) after ultra-sonication wherein the catalyst layer is dispersed in the alcohokwater mixture (middle image); and (c) the delaminated, clean and clear membrane recovered from the alcohokwater mixture (right hand image);
- Figure 5 shows images of dispersions and recovered membranes after treatment of catalyst coated membranes in a range of different alcohokwater mixtures indicating that methanol is not effective at delaminating catalyst layers from membrane (image a) whereas the order of effectiveness of other alcohols at achieving delamination of catalyst layers and recovery of clean and clear membrane is as follows: n-butanol>n-propanol>i-propanol>ethanol (image b); and Figure 6 shows an example of a process flow for treatment of waste dispersion media in a CCM recycling process.
- the present specification is concerned with providing a method of recycling fluorine containing ionomer from fuel cell or water electrolyser waste membrane material (e.g., catalyst coated membranes - CCMs).
- the method is advantageous in that it enables waste dispersion media generated during the recycling process to be treated to remove harmful fluorine containing species so that they are safe to dispose of or, advantageously, so that the solvents used in the process can be recycled and re-used in the process.
- CCMs may contain ionomer in one or both of the catalyst layers as well as in the bulk ionomer membrane on which the catalyst layers are disposed.
- different ionomers can be used in the catalyst layers and bulk ionomer membrane.
- the present specification includes a method in which the catalyst layer ionomers can be separated from the membrane ionomers and wherein the catalyst layer ionomers are processed separated from the membrane ionomer such that both membrane and catalyst layer ionomers are recovered in addition to PGM containing catalyst materials.
- This method can generate waste dispersion media from both the processing of the membrane ionomer and the catalyst layer ionomer.
- both these sources of waste dispersion media are treated to remove harmful fluorine containing species so that the solvents used in the process can be recycled and re-used in the process.
- a method of recycling a waste catalyst coated membrane comprising a membrane including a membrane ionomer, a first catalyst layer disposed on one side of the membrane, the first catalyst layer comprising a first catalyst and a first catalyst layer ionomer, and a second catalyst layer disposed on an opposite side of the membrane, the second catalyst layer comprising a second catalyst and a second catalyst layer ionomer, the method comprising: contacting the waste catalyst coated membrane with a solvent to delaminate both of the first and second catalyst layers from the membrane without dispersing the membrane, wherein the first and second catalyst layers form a catalyst layer slurry comprising the first catalyst, the first catalyst layer ionomer, the second catalyst, and the second catalyst layer ionomer; separating the membrane from the catalyst layer slurry; processing the membrane to recover the membrane ionomer; and processing the catalyst layer slurry to disperse and recover the first and second catalyst layer ionomers in a solvent,
- the processing of the catalyst layer slurry may comprise: heating the catalyst layer slurry to disperse the first and second catalyst layer ionomers forming an ionomer dispersion in which solid first and second catalyst materials are disposed; separating the solid first and second catalyst materials from the ionomer dispersion (e.g., using a solid-liquid separation technique such as filtration); processing the ionomer dispersion to recover the first and second catalyst layer ionomers; and processing the solid first and second catalyst materials to separate and recover the first and second catalyst materials or components thereof.
- the step of heating the catalyst layer slurry to disperse the first and second catalyst layer ionomers can be performed in the same solvent used to delaminate the first and second catalyst layers from the membrane.
- the catalyst slurry can be processed to adjust the solvent composition or remove the solvent used in the delamination process, and then the material can thus be re-slurried in a different solvent to disperse and separate the catalyst layer ionomer.
- One or more of the catalyst layer components can be leached either before and/or after the material is re-slurried to disperse the catalyst layer ionomer material.
- the step of heating the catalyst layer slurry to disperse the first and second catalyst layer ionomers is performed at a higher temperature than the step of contacting the waste catalyst coated membrane with the solvent to delaminate both of the first and second catalyst layers from the membrane without dispersing the membrane.
- the solvent in which the dispersion is performed is the same solvent used to delaminate the catalyst layers from the membrane.
- the temperature is kept sufficiently low that the membrane ionomer does not disperse but the catalyst layers delaminate and form a slurry.
- the slurry can be increased in temperature to disperse the catalyst layer ionomer and separate from the solid catalyst materials.
- the step of heating the catalyst layer slurry to disperse the first and second catalyst layer ionomers in the solvent can also be performed at elevated pressure in an autoclave.
- Processing of the catalyst layer slurry may further comprise converting the first and second catalyst layer ionomers to salt form.
- Salt formation e.g., by treatment with a base
- the catalyst layer ionomer dispersion is also advantageous subjected to ion-exchange to remove metal contaminants.
- the first and second catalyst layer ionomers can be recovered from the ionomer dispersion as a blend of the first and second catalyst layer ionomers or alternatively the ionomer dispersion can be processed to separate the first and second catalyst layer ionomers.
- a process to delaminate the catalyst layers can be used to separate the different types of ionomers in the membrane and catalyst layers so that the different types of ionomers can be processed separately.
- prior art methods which involve dispersing both the catalyst layer ionomer and bulk membrane ionomer, where the ionomer in the catalyst layers is different to that in the bulk membrane it can then be difficult to separate the mixed ionomer dispersion, especially since there is a large amount of ionomer from the membrane.
- the catalyst layer ionomer dispersion is processed separately from the majority of the CCM ionomer which remains in the membrane.
- the different types of ionomers can be more easily separated and the smaller volume of ionomer from just the catalyst layers is easier to process, e.g., to remove metal contamination and/or separate ionomer of different types.
- the solvent used to delaminate both of the first and second catalyst layers from the membrane can be a mixture of an alcohol and water, wherein the alcohol in the mixture of the alcohol and water is selected from n-butanol, n-propanol, i-propanol, or ethanol. It has been found that while methanol and water is ineffective at delaminating catalyst layers from an ionomer membrane, a mixture of n- butanol, n-propanol, i-propanol, or ethanol with water can effectively delaminate the catalyst layers and disperse the catalyst layer ionomer without dispersing the bulk ionomer membrane.
- the alcohol is preferably selected from n-butanol, n-propanol, or i-propanol, more preferably n-butanol or n- propanol, and most preferably n-butanol. Selection can be based on a suitable Hansen solubility parameter range.
- the mixture of alcohol and water may have a volume ratio of alcohokwater between 0 and 1 and which is advantageously: at least 50:50, 60:40, or 70:30; no more than 95:5, 90:10, or 85:15; or within a range defined by any combination of the aforementioned lower and upper limits.
- the ratio can be optimized to enable effective delamination of the catalyst layers to form a catalyst layer slurry without dispersing the bulk ionomer membrane for a given set of process conditions and CCM feed materials for recycling.
- the solvent e.g., the mixture of alcohol and water
- the solvent can be agitated to aid delamination of the catalyst layers, e.g., by sonification. Ultra-sonification has been found to be effective for use in the present method.
- the solvent can be maintained at a temperature below 150°C, 100°C, 80°C, 60°C, or 40°C, optionally greater than 5°C, 10°C or 15°C, optionally within a range defined by any of the preceding upper and lower values.
- the temperature can be sufficiently low such that the catalyst layers delaminate without dispersing the fluorinated polymer membrane which remains in solid, undispersed form.
- Contacting of the waste catalyst coated membrane with the solvent to delaminate the catalyst layers can be performed for a time period of: at least 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes or 1 hour; no more than 5 hours, 3 hours, or 2 hours; or within a range defined by any combination of the aforementioned lower and upper limits.
- the specific time period for the deamination step with depend on a given set of process conditions (e.g., type/concentration of alcohol, temperature, pressure, agitation, etc.) and type of CCM feed material for recycling.
- the waste catalyst coated membrane is processed into a plurality of pieces (e.g., by cutting) prior to contacting with the solvent to delaminate the catalyst layers.
- This can aid clean delamination of the catalyst layers from the bulk ionomer membrane as well as making it easier to handle and process large areas of waste catalyst coated membrane material (e.g., in amounts ranging from 5% to 100% of the original membrane).
- the first catalyst may comprise platinum, palladium and/or ruthenium (optionally on a support material such as a carbon support material) and the second catalyst may comprise iridium (e.g., an iridium oxide material).
- the methodology is particularly suited to recycling catalyst coated membranes in which the membrane ionomer is different to one or both of the first and second catalyst layer ionomers.
- the catalyst layer ionomers may be the same or different from each other.
- the solid bulk ionomer membrane can be separated from the slurry using a solid-liquid separation technique such as decanting and/or filtering.
- the solid bulk ionomer membrane can then be further processed to recover the membrane ionomer without interference from the catalyst layer ionomer.
- Further processing of the bulk ionomer membrane may include dispersing the membrane ionomer in a solvent and separating the dispersed membrane ionomer from other components of the bulk ionomer membrane such as reinforcement polymer.
- the recovered membrane ionomer can then be re-used to manufacture new membrane material.
- the catalyst layer slurry is separately processed to recover the first and second catalyst layer ionomers and the first and second catalyst materials.
- the first and second catalysts can be filtered from a dispersion of catalyst layer ionomer and then subjected to selective dissolve and refining steps to recover individual platinum group metals.
- Processing of the catalyst layer slurry may also comprise communition of catalyst layer material prior to selective dissolve and refining steps to recover individual platinum group metals.
- the remaining catalyst layer ionomer dispersion can be recycled for manufacturing new catalyst layer inks.
- FIG. 1 An example of a process flow is illustrated in Figure 1.
- the first stage of this process involves separating the catalyst layers from the membrane.
- the CCM material can be immersed in an alcohol- water mixture and sonicated or otherwise agitated for a period of time where the catalyst layers separate and disperse into the solvent.
- the membrane can be further processed to recover the membrane ionomer component.
- a and B To recover the PGMs and ionomer in the catalysts layers there are two options A and B as illustrated in Figures 2 and 3.
- the catalyst layer material can be subjected to HCI/oxidant (e.g. chlorine) treatment to leach the platinum.
- HCI/oxidant e.g. chlorine
- the liquor from this treatment can then be purified from base metals (using, for example, a cationic exchange resin), undergo Ru removal via a distillation or other process, and then enter directly into a Pt refining stream.
- the remaining Ir containing residue from the leach can undergo a process which involves heating/autoclaving the material in an alcoholic solvent to dissolve/disperse the ionomer.
- the ionomer dispersion is separated from the Ir containing solution via filtration or centrifugation (as an alternative, the Ir can be leached prior to or after ionomer dispersion).
- the ionomer dispersion then goes on for further processing to be recycled back to manufacture new CCMs.
- the Ir containing residue can either be processed in order to directly reuse the Ir catalyst or the residue can be refined to
- the catalyst layer material can be heated in alcoholic solvent to elevated temperature and optionally autoclaved to disperse the catalyst layer components.
- This resultant slurry then undergoes a solid/liquid separation by either filtration or centrifugation.
- the supernatant/filtrate contains dispersed ionomer which can then be further processed to be recycled back to manufacture new CCMs.
- the PGM residue is dried to ensure complete removal of organic solvent before being subject to a HCI/chlorine leach treatment.
- the liquor from this leach treatment can then be purified from base metals (using, for example, a cationic exchange resin), undergo Ru removal via a distillation process, and then enter directly into a Pt refining stream.
- the residue from the leach process still contains the Ir catalyst which will have been largely unchanged due to its stability. This can either be processed in order to directly reuse the Ir catalyst or the residue can be refined to recover the Ir metal.
- catalyst layer recycling processes are the use of an oxidative acid leach to extract platinum (and/or palladium and/or ruthenium) material and an extraction of iridium either via a reductive leach or solid-liquid separation after extraction of the platinum and ionomer dispersion.
- the Pt leach can be applied before or after dispersing ionomer and before or after leaching of iridium.
- the process order can be: (i) iridium leach; (ii) platinum leach; (iii) processing of remaining catalyst layer ionomer.
- the process order can be: (i) platinum leach; (ii) iridium leach; (iii) processing of remaining catalyst layer ionomer.
- an iridium leach is not required to separate the iridium from the ionomer. Rather, the iridium containing material is separated from the catalyst layer ionomer material by dispersing the ionomer material and using a solid/solution separation to remove the ionomer. In this case, the solid/liquid separation may be used for separation of insoluble Ir, Pt, Ru and/or Rh containing species/alloys.
- the platinum leaching step can be performed prior to the step of dispersing the ionomer as in Figure 2.
- the ionomer dispersion step can be performed prior to the platinum leaching step as in Figure 3.
- the process first separates the catalyst layers from the bulk polymer membrane and then applies the processing steps to the catalyst layer materials with the bulk ionomer membrane being processed separately.
- the specific method to be utilized will depend on operator requirements, demand for components, and desired form of material recovered by the process. For example, if it is desired to extract a certain component early in the recycling process, e.g., due to a shortage of that particular component, then the appropriate process flow may be selected to obtain the desired component early in the process rather than retaining a significant quantity of the component for extended time periods within the recycling process.
- the process of this specification may be selected, as the initial step of removing the catalyst layers from the bulk ionomer membrane ensures that the bulk ionomer membrane can be recovered and processed quickly while the ionomer and PGMs in the catalyst layers are subjected to further processing to perform the various separation steps.
- the waste catalyst coated membrane can be contacted with a mixture of an alcohol and water and agitated in order to delaminate both of the first and second catalyst layers from the membrane without dispersing the membrane.
- the first and second catalyst layers are dispersed in the mixture of alcohol and water forming a catalyst layer dispersion comprising the first catalyst, the first catalyst layer ionomer, the second catalyst, and the second catalyst layer ionomer.
- Figure 4 shows: (a) a catalyst coated membrane subject to size reduction (cutting) and immersed in an 80:20 alcohokwater mixture (left hand image); (b) after ultra-sonication wherein the catalyst layer was dispersed in solution (middle image); and (c) the delaminated, clean and clear membrane recovered from the alcohokwater mixture (right hand image).
- the alcohol in the mixture of the alcohol and water is selected from n-butanol, n-propanol, i-propanol, or ethanol. It has been found that while methanol and water is ineffective at delaminating catalyst layers from an ionomer membrane, a mixture of n-butanol, n-propanol, i-propanol, or ethanol with water can effectively delaminate the catalyst layers and disperse the catalyst layer ionomer without dispersing the bulk ionomer membrane.
- the order of effectiveness of these alcohols at achieving delamination of catalyst layers and recovery of clean and clear membrane is as follows: n-butanol>n- propanol>i-propanol>ethanol.
- the alcohol is preferably selected from n-butanol, n-propanol, or i-propanol, more preferably n-butanol or n-propanol, and most preferably n-butanol.
- Figure 5 shows images of dispersions and recovered membranes after treatment of catalyst coated membranes in a range of different alcohokwater mixtures indicating that methanol was not effective at delaminating catalyst layers from membrane (image a) whereas the order of effectiveness of other alcohols at achieving delamination of catalyst layers and recovery of clean and clear membrane was as follows: n-butanol>n-propanol>i-propanol>ethanol (image b).
- the mixture of alcohol and water may have a volume ratio of alcohokwater between 0 and 1 and which is advantageously: at least 50:50, 60:40, or 70:30; no more than 95:5, 90:10, or 85:15; or within a range defined by any combination of the aforementioned lower and upper limits.
- the ratio can be optimized to enable effective dispersion of the catalyst layer ionomer without dispersing the bulk ionomer membrane for a given set of process conditions and CCM feed materials for recycling.
- the mixture of the alcohol and water can be agitated by sonification. Ultra-sonification has been found to be effective for use in the present method.
- Contacting of the waste catalyst coated membrane with the mixture of alcohol and water to delaminate the catalyst layers can be performed for a time period of: at least 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes or 1 hour; no more than 5 hours, 3 hours, or 2 hours; or within a range defined by any combination of the aforementioned lower and upper limits.
- the specific time period for the deamination step with depend on a given set of process conditions (type/concentration of alcohol, temperature, pressure, agitation, etc.) and type of CCM feed material for recycling.
- the waste catalyst coated membrane is processed into a plurality of pieces (e.g. by cutting) prior to contacting with the mixture of alcohol and water. This can aid clean delamination of the catalyst layers from the bulk ionomer membrane as well as making it easier to handle and process large areas of waste catalyst coated membrane material.
- Processing steps to recover ionomer from catalyst layer material may comprise:
- Processing steps to recover ionomer from the bulk membrane may comprise:
- Ionomer recovered from the bulk membrane and/or catalyst layers in accordance with the aforementioned processed can be further purified by subjecting to ultrafiltration processes and subjected to separation and/or blending processes.
- the catalyst layer material which is separated from the bulk polymer membrane using the previously described process will generally comprise ionomer, at least one catalyst comprising platinum, palladium and/or ruthenium, and at least one catalyst comprising iridium.
- This material can be processed to recover the PGMs and ionomer using the following generic method:
- the following description will focus on an example which includes a platinum catalyst and an iridium- based catalyst (e.g. IrOx).
- the same approach can be used if the platinum catalyst is replaced with a palladium catalyst, a ruthenium catalyst, a mixed PGM catalyst comprising a combination of at least two of platinum, palladium, and ruthenium, or a catalyst comprising at least one PGM and at least one non-PGM metal (e.g. PtCo).
- the acid used in one or both of the iridium leach and the platinum leach is optionally hydrochloric acid.
- one or both of the solutions used for the leach of platinum and iridium are preferably heated to a temperature of: at least 50°C, 60°C, or 70°C; no more than 160°C, 100°C, or 90°C; or within a range defined by any combination of the aforementioned lower and upper limits, wherein if the solution is heated above 100°C then this is done in a pressurized vessel.
- the oxidant for the leach of platinum can comprise, for example, a chlorate salt such as sodium chlorate solution or chlorine gas (e.g., generated electrolytically in-situ). The oxidant can be added to the hydrochloric acid solution after heating up to the aforementioned temperature.
- the solution may comprise concentrated HCI of, for example, approximately 6M HCI.
- Separation of the solution containing the leached platinum may be achieved via filtration.
- the separated solution may be concentrated by boiling the solution down to a suitable PGM concentration for further processing.
- the leachate can be recirculated to leach platinum from further waste catalyst coated membrane material, recirculation being repeated as required until a target concentration of PGM is reached.
- the PGM containing leachate is then further processed to extract the platinum from the acidic solution using known techniques.
- the remaining solid components of the waste catalyst layer material can be processed separately.
- the method further comprises a step to extract iridium from the waste catalyst layer material.
- This may be achieved by leaching of Ir species from the waste catalyst layer material via a reductive dissolve process using an acid (such as 8 to 12 M HCI) and a reductant (such as hydrazine, NaBH4, or ammonium oxalate), yielding an Ir-containing acidic liquor.
- a reductive dissolve process using an acid (such as 8 to 12 M HCI) and a reductant (such as hydrazine, NaBH4, or ammonium oxalate), yielding an Ir-containing acidic liquor.
- WO2021083758 describes several examples of such a process for the dissolution of Ir in a reductive HCI environment. Since the previously described oxidative acidic platinum leach does not leach iridium to any significant extent, then such a reductive acidic leaching process step for the iridium can be performed after the oxidative acidic leaching step for platinum.
- the iridium leach can be performed prior to the platinum leach.
- the proposed route according to this example is thus a two-step process involving the selective leaching of Ir and Pt species from the waste CCM, without the need for incineration or other otherwise destructive processing. The steps are as follows and could be conducted in any order:
- Liquors generated from steps one and two can then be directed to their respective purification processes (if significant impurities exist) or used directly as a precursor for new catalyst materials.
- the solid residues may then undergo further leaching to remove the remaining PGM species, with the resulting ionomer residue then recycled.
- This process selectively recovers PGMs from waste catalyst layer materials, allowing for further simple recovery processes for the remaining catalyst layer ionomer.
- the process provides a full recovery and recycle route for both the PGMs and ionomer.
- the two-step process involving Pt and Ir leaches enables a simple and quick route to separate and recover both Ir and Pt with the possibility to directly feeding metal solutions back into catalyst manufacturing processes.
- the compact, bespoke nature of the process will reduce lead-time and increase metal liquidity.
- the process enables the creation of a closed loop cycle for scrap CCM material, not only the PGMs but also the ionomer.
- the process also enables open loop recycling of end-of-life CCMs.
- the iridium (or iridium oxide) material can be separated from the catalyst layer ionomer by dispersing the ionomer.
- platinum can be leached from the waste catalyst layer material as previously described and then the remaining waste catalyst layer material comprising solid ionomer and iridium species can be subjected to an ionomer dispersion yielding a slurry comprising an ionomer dispersion in which solid iridium species are disposed.
- the ionomer dispersion can be separated from the solid iridium species using a solid/liquid separation (e.g., filtration or centrifugation) to yield an ionomer dispersion for recycling.
- the remaining solid iridium material may be directly re-used in a CCM manufacturing process or may be refined prior to re-use.
- the catalyst layer ionomer can be dispersed prior to platinum leaching to yield a mixed PGM residue for further processing.
- the waste catalyst layer material is subjected to HCI/oxidant (e.g. chlorine) treatment to leach platinum, and optionally also ruthenium if present in the waste catalyst layer material.
- HCI/oxidant e.g. chlorine
- the liquor from this treatment can then treated to remove base metals such as nickel and cobalt (using, for example, a cationic exchange resin), undergo Ru removal via a distillation or other process, and then enter directly into a Pt refining process stream to recover the Pt.
- the residual waste catalyst layer material from the leach can undergo a process involving heating/autoclaving the material in a solvent (e.g., an alcoholic solvent) to disperse the ionomer.
- a solvent e.g., an alcoholic solvent
- the ionomer dispersion can then be separated from the Ir containing solids via filtration or centrifugation.
- the ionomer dispersion can then go on for further processing to be recycled back to manufacture new CCMs either as a pure or blended material. Examples of processes for recycling perfluorosulphonic acid ionomer are described in US7255798 and WO2016/156815.
- the Ir catalyst due to its inherent stability, could be reused without further processing or the Ir solids can be refined to recover the Ir metal.
- the platinum leaching step is performed on the waste catalyst layer material prior to the step of dispersing the ionomer.
- the ionomer dispersion is performed prior to the platinum leaching step.
- the waste catalyst layer material is heated in a solvent (e.g., an alcoholic solvent) to elevated temperature and optionally autoclaved to disperse the ionomer.
- a solid/liquid separation is performed on the resultant slurry (e.g., by either filtration or centrifugation).
- the solution will contain dispersed ionomer which will then be further processed to be recycled back to manufacture new CCMs.
- the PGM residue may be dried to ensure complete removal of organic solvent before being subject to a HCI/chlorine leach treatment as previously described.
- the liquor from the leach can be treated to remove base metals such as Ni and/or Co (e.g., for example, a cationic exchange resin), undergo Ru removal (e.g., via a distillation process) and then the remaining platinum containing solution provided into a Pt refining process stream to recover the Pt as previously described.
- the residue from the leach process still contains the Ir catalyst which will have been largely unchanged due to its stability. This can either be processed in order to directly reuse the Ir catalyst material (e.g., IrOx) or the residue can be refined to recover the Ir. Processing of waste dispersion media
- a waste dispersion media comprising a solvent and fluorine containing species such as soluble fluorine containing organic compounds, soluble fluoride species, and/or insoluble fluorine containing species such as insoluble metal fluorides.
- the waste dispersion media can be treated to reduce the concentration of fluorine containing species in the solvent, after which the solvent can be safely discarded or recycled for re-use in processing further membrane and/or catalyst layer slurry material.
- the treatment of the waste dispersion media may comprise contacting the waste dispersion media with a solid adsorbent and/or an ion exchange media to reduce the concentration of fluorine containing species in the solvent, optionally also reducing the concentration of residual metal cations in the solvent.
- the waste dispersion media may also be subjected to crossflow filtration or ultrafiltration, e.g., prior to contacting the waste dispersion media with an adsorbent such as activated charcoal and/or contacting with one or more ion exchange media.
- the present specification also provides a treatment method for dispersion media (e.g., water, alkaline aqueous solutions, or water / alcohol mixtures) used in the recycling of ionomers from CCM membrane components and/or catalyst layer components.
- the used dispersion media can be contacted with a cationic ion exchange resin and optionally an anionic ion exchange resin and/or a capture media such as activated charcoal.
- the resulting treated used dispersion media has a reduced level of low molecular weight soluble organic compounds such as fluorinated or partially fluorinated sulphonic or carboxylic acids, and (optionally) a reduced level of residual cations such as iron, nickel, copper, and chrome.
- the treated dispersion media can subsequently be re-used in a closed loop system or safely discarded.
- the waste dispersion media can be first subjected to crossflow filtration or ultrafiltration step to concentrate the impurities prior to the capture and disposal of fluorine containing impurities.
- the ion exchanged resin can be regenerated.
- the waste stream can be concentrated and discarded through pyrolysis (e.g., using a thermal oxidizer).
- Activated carbon columns can also be pyrolyzed at end-of-life.
- Figure 6 shows an example of the process flow for treatment of waste dispersion media.
- the advantages of this waste dispersion media processing method include a reduction of emissions resulting from the recycling of ionomers from production scrap and/or end-of-life fuel cell and/or water electrolyser CCM components. Reduction in water consumption is also advantageous.
- adsorbents such as a carbon-based adsorbent such as activated charcoal, a silica-based adsorbent, a metal-based adsorbent, and/or an ion exchange resin that can adsorb/react with F.
- Ion exchange resins include, for example, zirconium or aluminium pre-loaded chelating resins with amino-methyl phosphonic acid functionality, a strongly basic anion exchange resin containing quaternary ammonium functional groups, an iminodiacetic acid functionalized cation exchange resin pre-loaded with metal ions (such as Fe 3+ , Al 3+ , Ce 3+ , and/or La 3+ ), or a cryptand ligand.
- the adsorbent may be a silica-based adsorbent, for example a glass material such as a barium-silicate glass material which can be provided in glass powder form.
- the fluorine containing waste dispersion media can be passed through a packed column or bed of such an adsorbent to remove fluorine containing species.
- the adsorbent can periodically be replaced and/or treated to remove the fluorine and re-generate the adsorbent for re-use. Summary
- the present methodology combines operations to create a process for ionomer and PGM recovery from CCM including delamination (and optionally communition) of catalyst layers from the bulk membrane to generate a more concentrated ionomer containing membrane stream and a more concentrated PGM containing catalyst layer stream from which the PGM can be leached more effectively while also enabling recovery of catalyst layer ionomer.
- Alcohol/water solvent systems are provided and through tuning conditions (type/concentration of alcohol, temperature, pressure, time, agitation) it is possible to treat CCMs (or MEAs) to achieve one or the following outcomes:
- the process can be preceded with and/or followed with one or more of the following steps:
- Conditions can be tuned to achieve the desired outcome.
- a particular point to note with the present specification is the purpose of using the alcohol/water mixes. Previous work focused on selective separation and recycling of PGMs, e.g., keeping the anode PGMs separate from cathode PGMs. In contrast, here we identify that certain alcohol/water mixes can be used for ionomer/ionomer separation. Most ionomer recycling processes of CCMs look at full dispersion of all the ionomers in the CCM which means that ionomer to ionomer separation has to be dealt with in another way. It is highly likely that future CCMs will contain multiple ionomers.
- This method of delaminating the catalyst layer ionomer from the membrane provides an industrial viable approach to dealing with such multiionomer CCMs and represents potentially the best/only way to separate ionomers during a scaled industrial CCM recycling process if different ionomers are used in catalyst layers and bulk membrane.
- the drivers for PFSA recycling generally are:
- Financial - Cost of ionomer can be equivalent to that of precious metals in PEM products.
- this invention provides a methodology for mixed ionomer recycling with flexibility for scale up challenges and for future streams of waste material to be recycled.
- the method is advantageous in that it enables waste dispersion media generated during the recycling process to be treated to remove harmful fluorine containing species so that they are safe to dispose of or, advantageously, so that the solvents used in the process can be recycled and re-used in the process.
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- Medicinal Chemistry (AREA)
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Abstract
L'invention concerne un procédé de recyclage de membrane usagée comprenant un ionomère fluoré, le procédé consistant à : disperser l'ionomère fluoré de la membrane usagée dans un solvant ; séparer l'ionomère fluoré du solvant, le solvant se présentant, après la séparation de l'ionomère fluoré, sous la forme d'un milieu de dispersion usé comprenant le solvant et des l'éléments contenant du fluor dans le solvant ; et traiter le milieu de dispersion usé pour réduire la concentration de l'élément contenant du fluor dans le solvant.
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US202263385814P | 2022-12-02 | 2022-12-02 | |
US63/385,814 | 2022-12-02 | ||
GB2300414.6 | 2023-01-11 | ||
GB202300414 | 2023-01-11 |
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WO2024115879A1 true WO2024115879A1 (fr) | 2024-06-06 |
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PCT/GB2023/053009 WO2024115879A1 (fr) | 2022-12-02 | 2023-11-16 | Recyclage de membrane usagée comprenant un ionomère fluoré |
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WO (1) | WO2024115879A1 (fr) |
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US20050211630A1 (en) * | 2004-03-26 | 2005-09-29 | Ion Power, Inc. | Recycling of used perfluorosulfonic acid membranes |
WO2006089180A2 (fr) | 2005-02-16 | 2006-08-24 | 3M Innovative Properties Company | Catalyseur pour piles a combustible |
US7709135B2 (en) | 2008-06-06 | 2010-05-04 | Basf Corporation | Efficient process for previous metal recovery from cell membrane electrode assemblies |
WO2016156815A1 (fr) | 2015-03-27 | 2016-10-06 | Johnson Matthey Fuel Cells Limited | Procédé |
CN106898790A (zh) | 2015-12-17 | 2017-06-27 | 中国科学院大连化学物理研究所 | 一种质子交换膜燃料电池膜电极回收方法 |
US20200102659A1 (en) | 2018-09-27 | 2020-04-02 | 3M Innovative Properties Company | Membrane, membrane electrode assembly, and water electrolyzer including the same |
WO2021083758A1 (fr) | 2019-10-28 | 2021-05-06 | Syddansk Universitet | Procédé de récupération d'iridium |
US20220073379A1 (en) * | 2016-04-13 | 2022-03-10 | Emerging Compounds Treatment Technologies, Inc. | Sustainable System and Method for Removing and Concentrating Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) from Water |
Family Cites Families (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
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EP4443567A1 (fr) * | 2021-12-01 | 2024-10-09 | Dankook University Cheonan Campus Industry Academic Corporation Foundation | Procédé de récupération d'ionomère et de catalyseur à partir d'un ensemble membrane-électrode ou d'une membrane échangeuse d'ions |
WO2023111750A1 (fr) * | 2021-12-13 | 2023-06-22 | 3M Innovative Properties Company | Procédé de recyclage d'un article solide comprenant un polymère fluoré |
-
2023
- 2023-11-16 WO PCT/GB2023/053009 patent/WO2024115879A1/fr unknown
- 2023-11-16 GB GB2317550.8A patent/GB2626404A/en active Pending
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US20050211630A1 (en) * | 2004-03-26 | 2005-09-29 | Ion Power, Inc. | Recycling of used perfluorosulfonic acid membranes |
US7255798B2 (en) | 2004-03-26 | 2007-08-14 | Ion Power, Inc. | Recycling of used perfluorosulfonic acid membranes |
WO2006089180A2 (fr) | 2005-02-16 | 2006-08-24 | 3M Innovative Properties Company | Catalyseur pour piles a combustible |
US7709135B2 (en) | 2008-06-06 | 2010-05-04 | Basf Corporation | Efficient process for previous metal recovery from cell membrane electrode assemblies |
WO2016156815A1 (fr) | 2015-03-27 | 2016-10-06 | Johnson Matthey Fuel Cells Limited | Procédé |
EP3275036A1 (fr) | 2015-03-27 | 2018-01-31 | Johnson Matthey Fuel Cells Limited | Procédé |
CN106898790A (zh) | 2015-12-17 | 2017-06-27 | 中国科学院大连化学物理研究所 | 一种质子交换膜燃料电池膜电极回收方法 |
US20220073379A1 (en) * | 2016-04-13 | 2022-03-10 | Emerging Compounds Treatment Technologies, Inc. | Sustainable System and Method for Removing and Concentrating Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) from Water |
US20200102659A1 (en) | 2018-09-27 | 2020-04-02 | 3M Innovative Properties Company | Membrane, membrane electrode assembly, and water electrolyzer including the same |
WO2021083758A1 (fr) | 2019-10-28 | 2021-05-06 | Syddansk Universitet | Procédé de récupération d'iridium |
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Title |
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