{
  "node": {
    "id": "term:reducing-agent",
    "type": "Term",
    "label": "Reducing agent",
    "properties": {
      "id": "reducing-agent",
      "name": "Reducing agent",
      "section": "topic-recycling",
      "aka": [
        "reductant"
      ],
      "definition": "A substance that gives up electrons in a reaction. In leaching black mass, hydrogen peroxide is added as a reducing agent so cobalt and manganese go from their oxidised states in the cathode to the divalent state that dissolves readily. In smelting, carbon plays the same part.",
      "related": [
        "leaching",
        "lixiviant",
        "smelting"
      ],
      "url": "https://lemonergy.com/learn/glossary/reducing-agent/",
      "mentions": [
        "cathode",
        "cobalt",
        "black-mass",
        "manganese"
      ]
    }
  },
  "edges": [
    {
      "id": "edge:belongsTo/term:reducing-agent/topic:topic-recycling",
      "source": "term:reducing-agent",
      "target": "topic:topic-recycling",
      "type": "belongsTo",
      "properties": {
        "sourceFile": "terms.json"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "edge:relatedTo/term:reducing-agent/term:leaching",
      "source": "term:reducing-agent",
      "target": "term:leaching",
      "type": "relatedTo",
      "properties": {
        "sourceFile": "terms.json",
        "meaning": "Related context; not a causal claim"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "edge:relatedTo/term:reducing-agent/term:lixiviant",
      "source": "term:reducing-agent",
      "target": "term:lixiviant",
      "type": "relatedTo",
      "properties": {
        "sourceFile": "terms.json",
        "meaning": "Related context; not a causal claim"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "edge:relatedTo/term:reducing-agent/term:smelting",
      "source": "term:reducing-agent",
      "target": "term:smelting",
      "type": "relatedTo",
      "properties": {
        "sourceFile": "terms.json",
        "meaning": "Related context; not a causal claim"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "edge:mentions/reducing-agent/cathode",
      "source": "term:reducing-agent",
      "target": "term:cathode",
      "type": "mentions",
      "properties": {
        "sourceFile": "terms.json",
        "method": "build_glossary.mention_index + mentions",
        "field": "definition",
        "meaning": "Text mention; not a causal claim"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "edge:mentions/reducing-agent/cobalt",
      "source": "term:reducing-agent",
      "target": "term:cobalt",
      "type": "mentions",
      "properties": {
        "sourceFile": "terms.json",
        "method": "build_glossary.mention_index + mentions",
        "field": "definition",
        "meaning": "Text mention; not a causal claim"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "edge:mentions/reducing-agent/black-mass",
      "source": "term:reducing-agent",
      "target": "term:black-mass",
      "type": "mentions",
      "properties": {
        "sourceFile": "terms.json",
        "method": "build_glossary.mention_index + mentions",
        "field": "definition",
        "meaning": "Text mention; not a causal claim"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "edge:mentions/reducing-agent/manganese",
      "source": "term:reducing-agent",
      "target": "term:manganese",
      "type": "mentions",
      "properties": {
        "sourceFile": "terms.json",
        "method": "build_glossary.mention_index + mentions",
        "field": "definition",
        "meaning": "Text mention; not a causal claim"
      }
    }
  ],
  "neighbors": [
    {
      "id": "topic:topic-recycling",
      "type": "Topic",
      "label": "Recycling and end of life",
      "properties": {
        "id": "topic-recycling",
        "name": "Recycling and end of life",
        "lede": "What happens to a battery after its first life: reuse, and the recycling routes that recover its materials, step by step.",
        "context": "Distinguish recovered material from a qualified product.",
        "example": "High mass recovery alone does not establish battery-grade purity or refining energy demand.",
        "lesson_url": "https://lemonergy.com/learn/fundamentals/cell-production/",
        "lesson_label": "Open process context"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "term:leaching",
      "type": "Term",
      "label": "Leaching",
      "properties": {
        "id": "leaching",
        "name": "Leaching",
        "aka": [
          "acid leaching",
          "reductive leaching"
        ],
        "section": "topic-recycling",
        "definition": "Dissolving the metals in black mass, usually in sulfuric acid with hydrogen peroxide as a reducing agent so cobalt and manganese go into solution as their more soluble lower oxidation state. The leach liquor carries lithium, nickel, cobalt and manganese, plus impurities such as copper and aluminium.",
        "related": [
          "hydrometallurgy",
          "black-mass",
          "solvent-extraction",
          "impurity-removal",
          "bioleaching",
          "deep-eutectic-solvent"
        ],
        "url": "https://lemonergy.com/learn/glossary/leaching/",
        "mentions": [
          "oxidation",
          "cobalt",
          "pregnant-leach-solution",
          "reducing-agent",
          "manganese"
        ]
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "term:lixiviant",
      "type": "Term",
      "label": "Lixiviant",
      "properties": {
        "id": "lixiviant",
        "name": "Lixiviant",
        "section": "topic-recycling",
        "definition": "The liquid used to dissolve metals in leaching. In battery recycling it is usually sulfuric acid, sometimes hydrochloric or an organic acid, and water for some lithium iron phosphate routes.",
        "related": [
          "leaching",
          "reducing-agent",
          "pregnant-leach-solution",
          "deep-eutectic-solvent"
        ],
        "url": "https://lemonergy.com/learn/glossary/lixiviant/",
        "mentions": [
          "lfp",
          "recycling"
        ]
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "term:smelting",
      "type": "Term",
      "label": "Smelting",
      "properties": {
        "id": "smelting",
        "name": "Smelting",
        "aka": [
          "alloy",
          "matte"
        ],
        "section": "topic-recycling",
        "definition": "Melting battery material in a furnace with fluxes so that cobalt, nickel and copper collect as a metal alloy or matte and the rest — lithium, aluminium, manganese — goes to the slag. The organic parts and graphite serve as fuel and reductant.",
        "related": [
          "pyrometallurgy",
          "lithium-recovery",
          "hydrometallurgy",
          "slag",
          "flue-dust"
        ],
        "url": "https://lemonergy.com/learn/glossary/smelting/",
        "mentions": [
          "graphite",
          "cobalt",
          "reducing-agent",
          "manganese"
        ]
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "term:cathode",
      "type": "Term",
      "label": "Cathode",
      "properties": {
        "id": "cathode",
        "name": "Cathode",
        "section": "topic-components",
        "definition": "The electrode where reduction happens: the positive electrode on discharge, the negative one on charge. In industry usage, “cathode” means the positive electrode and its material, whatever the cell is doing.",
        "related": [
          "positive-electrode",
          "anode",
          "reduction",
          "cathode-active-material"
        ],
        "lesson": "fundamentals/cell-anatomy/#anode-cathode",
        "example": {
          "title": "Check the reaction",
          "text": "During discharge, the positive electrode is the cathode because reduction occurs there. Charging moves reduction to the negative electrode."
        },
        "url": "https://lemonergy.com/learn/glossary/cathode/",
        "mentions": [
          "electrode"
        ]
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "term:cobalt",
      "type": "Term",
      "label": "Cobalt",
      "properties": {
        "id": "cobalt",
        "name": "Cobalt",
        "section": "topic-sustainability",
        "definition": "The metal that stabilises layered-oxide cathodes, mined largely in the Democratic Republic of Congo under scrutiny for working conditions. Its price and ethics have driven the industry from LCO and NMC111 towards high-nickel and cobalt-free LFP.",
        "related": [
          "nmc",
          "lco",
          "high-nickel",
          "critical-raw-materials",
          "due-diligence"
        ],
        "url": "https://lemonergy.com/learn/glossary/cobalt/",
        "mentions": []
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "term:black-mass",
      "type": "Term",
      "label": "Black mass",
      "properties": {
        "id": "black-mass",
        "name": "Black mass",
        "section": "topic-recycling",
        "definition": "The dark powder of mixed electrode materials left after end-of-life cells are discharged, shredded and separated from their casings, foils and separators. It is the traded intermediate that hydrometallurgical refiners buy.",
        "related": [
          "recycling",
          "hydrometallurgy",
          "pyrometallurgy",
          "mechanical-pretreatment",
          "froth-flotation"
        ],
        "url": "https://lemonergy.com/learn/glossary/black-mass/",
        "mentions": [
          "electrode"
        ]
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "term:manganese",
      "type": "Term",
      "label": "Manganese",
      "properties": {
        "id": "manganese",
        "name": "Manganese",
        "aka": [
          "manganese sulfate",
          "high-purity manganese sulfate",
          "HPMSM"
        ],
        "section": "topic-sustainability",
        "definition": "A cheap, abundant metal used in NMC, LMO and LMFP positive electrodes and in alkaline cells. Ore comes mostly from South Africa, Gabon and Australia, but about 95 % of battery-grade high-purity manganese sulfate was refined in China in 2024, which puts manganese on critical-raw-material lists despite plentiful reserves.",
        "related": [
          "nmc",
          "lmo",
          "lmfp",
          "critical-raw-materials",
          "cobalt",
          "nickel-sulfate"
        ],
        "url": "https://lemonergy.com/learn/glossary/manganese/",
        "mentions": []
      }
    }
  ]
}