How Do You Dry Black Mass?

Are you wondering how to dry black mass? Do you have questions about methods to dry black mass and why it has to be done?

If so, you are in the right place. In this article, you will learn everything about drying black mass and how to get your best, first cut.

In Part One of our battery recycling series, we explore how to safely shred fully charged lithium-ion batteries. Here, in Part Two, we are focusing on the next critical stages in the recycling process: drying and making the first recovery of black mass, one of the most valuable outputs in battery recycling.

Why Is Drying Essential?

After shredding, whether you are processing batteries through a dry or wet method, it is vital to remove the electrolyte and moisture before proceeding with further separation and recovery steps.

Drying Methods:

1. Vacuum Dryers
   1. The most effective but most expensive solution.
   1. Ideal for removing electrolyte residues completely.
   1. Often cost-prohibitive for smaller operations.
2. Heated Drying Augers
   1. A more affordable and scalable solution.
   1. Uses heat to gradually dry the shredded material while moving it.
3. Filter Presses
   1. Common in many facilities.
   1. Extracts much of the moisture before air-drying finishes the process.
   1. Especially useful if you are using a wet shredding process, where water needs to be removed in addition to electrolyte.

The target is to bring the material’s moisture content down to 10–15%, which is suitable for downstream processing such as fine milling and material classification.

When to Recover Black Mass

Depending on the drying method, some of the black mass will already be pulled out. For example, the filter press method will extract a good portion of black mass from the process. Once the material is sufficiently dried, the next step is to recover your first cut of dry black mass. This stage is crucial for value recovery.

Why You Should Not Start with Magnetic Separation:

A common mistake is removing steel components using a drum magnet before screening for black mass. While it might seem logical to extract steel first, doing so too early can lead to significant losses of black mass—up to 15–20%, depending on the material composition.

Instead, the first pass should go directly through a screener, which separates the fine, powdery black mass before any magnetic separation is introduced.

What Makes the First Cut Valuable

This initial cut of black mass is the cleanest and highest-grade fraction you will recover. It contains the richest concentrations of valuable elements like lithium, nickel, and cobalt.

Although some recyclers choose to blend all fractions later in the process, those looking for maximum purity and value will prioritize this first screening step. Over time, subsequent cuts will contain more graphite and other contaminants, reducing their overall worth.

Starting Simple, Scaling Smart

Many new battery recyclers begin with just this basic setup: shredding and recovering black mass. It is a profitable entry point, but as markets evolve and margins shrink, maximizing recovery becomes critical.

Eventually, you will want to process the byproducts left over from this initial step to extract even more value—something we will cover in future articles.

What’s Next?

To recap:

• Part One: How to shred fully charged lithium-ion batteries.
• Part Two (this article): How to dry the shredded material and recover the first cut of black mass.
• Coming Soon in Part Three: What to do with the remaining byproducts and how to optimize full battery recovery.

If you have any questions about the battery recycling process or troubles you are experiencing, please be sure to contact us.