Japanese auto maker Honda (NYSE: HMC) announced that it has established the world’s first process to reuse rare earth metals extracted from nickel-metal hydride batteries to “recycle precious resources.”
It has been extracting an oxide containing rare earth metals from used nickel-metal hydride batteries at the plant of Japan Metals & Chemicals Company, according to a company update. Until now, auto manufacturers have had to rely heavily on rare earths; that is why an increasing number have been examining alternatives to reduce or replace the REEs that they use. Honda’s press release explains that by applying molten salt electrolysis to the extracted oxide it has successfully extracted metallized rare earth that can be used directly as negative-electrode materials for newly manufactured hydride batteries.
High extraction levels; high purity
Under the newly defined process, Honda is able to extract over 80 percent of rare earth metals from the used batteries at more than 99-percent purity, which is the same level as products traded directly from mines after refining.
News of the project’s success has been a long time coming, with the manufacturing giant first alerting investors to its plans last year. At the time the move was considered as unsurprising as the Japanese manufacturing sector sought alternative means of REE supply on the back of China’s continuous indecision surrounding REE export quotas. Market uncertainty eventually led to Japan, the United States and European Union forming an alliance that moved in on the World Trade Organization (WTO) to challenge China’s restrictive export policies.
Source: Rare Earth Investing News
By Adam Currie