Li-ion batteries were manually dismantled and physically separated into their different parts, including the anode, cathode, steel,
separators, and current collectors. Electrodes were dried at 80 ◦C
for 24 h and then washed in distilled water at 40 ◦C for 1 h under
agitation to eliminate organic solvents, propylene carbonate (PC),
and ethylene carbonate (EC).