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Founded in 2022 by entrepreneur and mechanical engineer Sarah Fleischer and metallurgy researcher Ksenija Milicevic Neumann, tozero is a pioneering startup in Europe that recovers raw materials from lithium-ion battery waste and reintegrates them into global supply chains.
Harnessing a discovery published in Nature by Milicevic Neumann herself while at RWTH University in Aachen, tozero has transformed lab experiments into industrial reality in just two years.
Unlike traditional methods for recovering and recycling lithium, which require high-temperature fusion with possible losses of materials and considerable emissions, tozero is the first company in Europe to provide its clients with recovered lithium, reducing emissions by approximately 70% compared to conventional mining.
The CO2 assisted leaching process enables the recycling of different types of batteries, producing high-purity recycled lithium for direct industrial use. The "black mass" of thermally conditioned batteries undergoes carbonisation in an aqueous solution to transform lithium, which is not water-soluble, into lithium bicarbonate and lithium carbonate, which are. This facilitates its selective separation from the other elements.
Last April, nine months after the opening of the pilot plant, the Munich-based company delivered the first lot of recycled lithium to commercial clients, demonstrating a stable rate of lithium recovery, which meets the 80% goal set by the EU for 2031.
"Despite having the limited resources of a two-year-old startup, we have already made history by being the first in Europe to provide recycled lithium for final products," said CEO Sarah Fleischer.
As well as having obtained a 2.5-million-euro grant from the European Innovation Council (EIC), last November tozero closed an investment round having raised 11 million euros, which will be used to build the first industrial plant. The company projects that it will treat 30,000 tonnes of battery waste per year by 2026.
Name:
tozero
Sito web:
Sector:
Battery recycling
Pros:
Emissions reduced by 70% compared to conventional lithium extraction
Features:
Lithium-ion battery recycling and reintegration into global supply chains
Cover: tozero team