About lithium battery...|
In the fast-paced world of electric vehicles and portable technology, the global
demand for lithium batteries is surging at an unprecedented rate.
These powerful energy sources don't just fuel our gadgets —
they quietly drive the modern world.
Have you ever paused to think about just
how many
how many
how many
lithium batteries surround us ?
In 2023 , global shipments of lithium batteries soared to an astounding
solidifying their role as the beating heart of
modern's energy landscape.
Yet, with every heartbeat comes a countdown.
Lithium batteries typically reach the end of their life in just
5 to 8
years ,
leaving behind vast amounts of e-waste.
As reported,it is projected that by 2025,
e-waste will rise to 1.851 million tons in China.
This is where the challenge and opportunity of
lithium battery recycling emerges.Can we turn an impending environmental crisis into a
sustainable solution?
Air Pollution:
When improperly dismantled or recycled, lithium batteries release fine particles laced with heavy metals and toxic chemicals. These pollutants can infiltrate the air we breathe, leading to respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, cancers, or even hormone disruptions. Harmful gases like hydrofluoric acid (HF) can penetrate the skin or lungs, causing severe damage to the body.
This growing mountain of used batteries is a Sword of Damocles hanging over the
planet.
Enter OUROBOROS: BIT-China's Solution to the Global Problem
Orchestrating Unique Recycling of Old Batteries, Reviving Optimal Sustainability
Inspired by the ancient symbol of the
OUROBOROS, a serpent eating its own tail and constantly regenerating, representing the philosophy of cycle,
our project aims to create a sustainable, closed-loop recycling system for lithium batteries.
We believe this mythical serpent can
help us "devour" the waste and breathe new life into these spent energy sources.
Here's how OUROBOROS works:
In a magical realm, the mischievous serpent OUROBOROS found an old lithium
battery. Coiling around it, she unlocked the hidden "black powder" inside.
Waste lithium batteries are discharged, disassembled and sorted to obtain the
recycled raw material - “black powder”.
Covered in powder, OUROBOROS dived into a pool of enchanted acids. The metals in
the powder dissolved, releasing their energy into the shimmering waters.
Produces two organic acids through fermentation to bioleach metal ions from the
black powder
With four glowing wands, she gathered the
precious elements—cobalt, nickel, lithium, and manganese—using her ancient magic to carefully collect
them.
Yeast surface displays selective
metal-binding peptide which adsorbs and separates metal ions.
Finally, with a flash of light, OUROBOROS
transformed the metals into a brand-new battery, leaving behind only a glimmer of magic as she
vanished.
Engineered E. coli expressing urease, microbial-induced carbonate
mineralization
In just a few steps, OUROBOROS closes the
loop—bioleaching, biosorption, and biomineralization—realizing the recycling of used lithium batteries.
We envision this little OUROBOROS growing into a mighty python, coiled
around the "beating heart of modern energy," protecting the world from the environmental threat posed
by billions of used lithium batteries.
