Lithium-ion battery waste recycling and upcycling company American Manganese has received additional advisory services and funding support from the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP) to support its ‘Demonstration of Continuous Recycling of Cathode Material from Lithium-ion Battery Production Scrap’ research and development project, which started in August 2021.

"The amendment expands existing support American Manganese is receiving from NRC IRAP, as announced on August 13, which is through the NRC IRAP’s Fast Pilot in Foreign Markets program, designed to help innovative Canadian small and medium-sized businesses overcome barriers to global market entry and facilitate direct adoption of technology in foreign markets," the company said on January 5.

“We have made great progress to date, and we are extremely pleased to receive this additional funding from NRC IRAP to support the completion of our project activities and objectives,” said American Manganese president and CEO Larry Reaugh.

The critical metals company is focused on recycling and upcycling lithium-ion battery waste into high-value battery cathode materials, using its closed-loop RecycLiCo process. With minimal processing steps and more than 99% extraction of lithium, cobalt, nickel and manganese, the upcycling process creates valuable lithium-ion battery materials for direct integration into the manufacture of new lithium-ion batteries.

The company said in August that, in collaboration with lithium-ion battery manufacturer Italvolt, American Manganese will model, commission and test a lithium-ion battery cathode material recycling demonstration plant to include continuous operation with specific cathode waste processing objectives, such as capacity, extraction efficiency and material purity.

Italvolt plans to build one of Europe’s largest lithium-ion battery gigafactories in Scarmagno, Italy.

In March 2021, American Manganese signed a memorandum of understanding with Italvolt to collaborate on developing a commercial recycling plant using its patented RecycLiCo technology, alongside Italvolt’s Gigafactory.

“The collaboration with American Manganese is about to significantly accelerate our goals to become a fully sustainable battery manufacturer,” Italvolt founder and CEO Lars Carlstrom said in August.

“We are very impressed with the innovation and skills the collaboration can add to Italvolt. The circular economy is no longer just a vision, it is about to become a reality. American Manganese will set new standards for the industry and we at Italvolt are very proud to be a part of this project,” he said.

“Lithium-ion battery waste is a global concern, and we are thankful for the Fast Pilot in Foreign Markets program and the opportunity to collaborate with Italvolt and validate our RecycLiCo process to the global market. We are extremely pleased with the support from NRC IRAP,” Reaugh said in August.