In-situ enhanced catalytic reforming behavior of cobalt-based materials with inherent zero-valent aluminum in spent lithium ion batteries

Abstract As a renewable energy source, hydrogen production from biomass pyrolysis is one of the effective ways to promote global sustainable development. Herein, the inherent Al foils and typical LiCoO2 cathodes in spent lithium ion batteries are jointly employed as the catalyst to reform sawdust pyrolysis gas to produce hydrogen-rich synthesis gas. It is the introduction of Al element that triggers the in-situ atomic replacement reaction to immobilize volatile lithium, thereby inducing the formation of a similar Li-CO2 battery system, which efficiently converts CO2 into CO. Furthermore, a new adsorption-enhanced in-situ-assembled porous structure has been discovered and proved to obtain ~95% surface vacancy oxygen content and various hydrogen evolution sites. Eventually, the yields and volume fractions of H2 are 11.31 mmol/g and 65.79%, respectively, and the purity of syngas (H2+CO) reaches 91.82%, which verify its excellent performance in hydrogen reforming and CO2 conversion.