Abstract:Spent cathode materials in lithium-ion batteries were treated by low temperature carbon reduction and sulfuric acid curing to comprehensively recover valuable metals(Ni, Co, Mn). Effects of curing temperature, curing time, and dosage of sulfuric acid on recovery of valuable metals were investigated. The results show that recovery rate of valuable metals is 97% above under the conditions including reaction temperature of 250 ℃, reaction time of 30 min, and dosage ratio of sulfuric acid to cathode materials of 0.97 mL/g. Kinetics of metal oxides converting to metal sulfates during sulfuric acid curing are confirmed. The kinetic model of sulfuric acid curing process is shrinking core model and is controlled by internal diffusion, whose apparent activation energy is within range of solid film diffusion control model.