Intelligent leaching of Zn and Mn from spent disposable batteries to avoid traditional optimizing experiments

Spent disposable Zn-Mn and Zn-C batteries are important resources for recycling. Acid leaching is the crucial step in the hydrometallurgy process for recycling Zn and Mn from these spent Zn-based batteries. However, to obtain the optimal leaching efficiency, the uncontrollable components in waste feed and various leaching parameters cause numerous replicated optimal experiments, increasing the recovery cost and environmental risks. To solve the issues, we employed machine learning (ML) techniques to construct models to predict Zn and Mn leaching from spent disposable batteries without optimizing experiments. Among four ML algorithms tested, the extreme gradient boosting demonstrated superior predictive performance, achieving an R² of 0.85–0.98 across the training, test, and verification datasets. An analysis of feature importance indicated that the particle size, waste composition, acid concentration, temperature, and time affected the metal leaching most. This study also revealed the interaction effects of the waste properties and leaching process on the metal leaching. Furthermore, we created a user-friendly graphical user interface (GUI) that enables quick acquisition of metal leaching results, requiring only the measurement of waste particle size and component. Finally, experimental verification confirmed the practicability of the GUI. This study achieves intelligent metal leaching from spent batteries and overcomes the high recovery cost and environmental risks associated with traditional experimental optimizing methods.