Princeton NuEnergy breaks ground on South Carolina facility

Lithium-ion battery (LIB) recycler Princeton NuEnergy (PNE), Princeton, New Jersey, recently broke ground on what it claims is the United States’ first commercial-scale LIB direct recycling facility in Chester County, South Carolina.

When complete, the facility’s annual production is estimated at more than 10,000 tons per year of battery-grade cathode material—equivalent to producing more than 100,000 batteries for electric vehicles (EVs) each year.

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“We are pleased to welcome Princeton NuEnergy to Chester County and South Carolina,” Gov. Henry McMaster says in a news release. “The company’s new operation will have a significant impact in the community by creating 41 new jobs and advancing our state’s alternative energy sector."

Developed from research started at Princeton University, PNE’s patented, low-temperature, plasma-assisted separation process (LPAS) recovers more than 95 percent of lithium-ion materials found in all LIB chemistries. The company says its direct recycling process is significantly cleaner, faster and less costly than traditional recycling or virgin cathode production.

Additionally, PNE points to results from the Argonne National Laboratory’s EverBatt model, which highlight that direct recycling of batteries to pristine original equipment manufacturer- (OEM-) equivalent cathode can deliver reductions up to 40 percent in cost and 70 percent in environmental waste. The company adds that direct recycling fundamentally improves battery manufacturing by reducing water consumption, eliminating toxic acid leaching, avoiding refining emissions and reducing CO₂ emissions by up to 158,000 tons per year at 10,000 tons per year production levels versus cathode produced from virgin materials.

“Today is a national milestone for America’s circular battery economy and brings the research incubated at Princeton University to market,” PNE founder and CEO Chao Yan says. “South Carolina is an ideal location to lead the battery recycling revolution.”