Applications Filed into National Phase for Europe, South Korea, Canada, India, Australia, Japan, and China to Strengthen Patent Portfolio

RecycLiCo Battery Materials (“AMY” or the “Company“) is pleased to announce the filing of National Phase Patent Applications (NPPA) to further strengthen the Company’s patent portfolio. The Company’s original PCT Application No. PCT/US/2020/021888 was filed with the World Intellectual Property Organization and is now filed into the national phase for Europe, South Korea, Canada, India, Australia, Japan, and China.

The patent within the NPPA is the second invention contained in the Company’s RecycLiCo™ battery recycling process. The patent encompasses novel process functions that further enhance the RecycLiCo™ process and expand the processing capability for various waste battery input materials. 

These process functions and their benefits to the battery industry include:

  • The recovery of graphite and treatment of black mass material originating from the mechanical size reduction of end-of-life lithium-ion batteries.

Bloomberg is projecting 56 million passenger electric vehicles sales worldwide in 2040, and the need to recycle the trailing volume of end-of-life batteries will be a certainty. Therefore, black mass is expected to be the most common input material for hydrometallurgical processing, and significant demand for advanced and efficient processing of black mass material will be required. The RecycLiCo™ process presents a significant opportunity to reintroduce these critical battery materials back into the supply chain.

  • The treatment of fluoride originating from the lithium-ion battery electrolyte. 

The electrolyte is a highly toxic and hazardous lithium-ion battery material found in some black mass materials. If not treated, it could lead to complications in downstream recycling functions and environmental damage. 

  • The separation of aluminum from cathode active material in battery manufacturing scrap. 

Lithium-ion battery manufacturing includes coating cathode active material containing lithium, nickel, manganese, and cobalt to an aluminum foil to form the cathode electrode. This manufacturing process can result in off-spec cathodes that are scrapped as waste, which the RecycLiCo™ process can treat to produce high-quality cathode materials for battery re-manufacturing. 

“I’m proud of the excellent patent portfolio that we have built for efficient lithium-ion battery recycling and, in addition, a significant underlying value of RecycLiCo Battery Materials,” said Larry Reaugh, President and CEO of RecycLiCo Battery Materials. “This patent was first issued by the United States Patent and Trademark Office on June 5, 2019, which was only 81 days from the initial filing date. From our internal review of all issued patents by the US Patent Office, we indicated that our patent was the fastest issued patent under the Chemistry of Inorganic Compounds classification.”

A summary and reference to each national phase patent application are summarized below:

Country

Application Number

Europe

20770339.8

South Korea

10-2021-7033084

Canada

3130692

India

2021-27046545

Australia

2020-237451

Japan

2021-555449

China

P21H64862A

About RecycLiCo Battery Materials
RecycLiCo Battery Materials is a critical minerals company focused on the upcycling of lithium-ion battery waste into high-value battery cathode materials, using its closed-loop RecycLiCo™ Patented Process. With minimal processing steps and up to 99% extraction of lithium, cobalt, nickel, and manganese, the upcycling process creates valuable lithium-ion battery materials for direct integration into the re-manufacturing of new lithium-ion batteries.

RecycLiCo Battery Materials’s original patented manganese process is the cornerstone technology in the development of the Company’s lithium-ion battery cathode recycling process, RecycLiCo™.

On behalf of Management

RecycLiCo Battery Materials

Larry W. Reaugh
President and Chief Executive Officer

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The Toronto Stock Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. This news release may contain certain “Forward-Looking Statements” within the meaning of Section 21E of the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company’s expectations are disclosed in the Company’s documents filed from time to time with the Toronto Stock Exchange, the British Columbia Securities Commission and the US Securities and Exchange Commission.