{
  "node": {
    "id": "term:upcycling",
    "type": "Term",
    "label": "Upcycling",
    "properties": {
      "id": "upcycling",
      "name": "Upcycling",
      "section": "topic-recycling",
      "definition": "Turning a recovered cathode material into a more valuable one during relithiation — for example converting old NMC111 to a nickel-richer composition — so that direct recycling keeps up with chemistries that change faster than batteries retire.",
      "related": [
        "relithiation",
        "direct-recycling",
        "high-nickel"
      ],
      "url": "https://lemonergy.com/learn/glossary/upcycling/",
      "mentions": [
        "cathode"
      ]
    }
  },
  "edges": [
    {
      "id": "edge:4412",
      "source": "term:upcycling",
      "target": "topic:topic-recycling",
      "type": "belongsTo",
      "properties": {
        "sourceFile": "terms.json"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "edge:4413",
      "source": "term:upcycling",
      "target": "term:relithiation",
      "type": "relatedTo",
      "properties": {
        "sourceFile": "terms.json",
        "meaning": "Related context; not a causal claim"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "edge:4414",
      "source": "term:upcycling",
      "target": "term:direct-recycling",
      "type": "relatedTo",
      "properties": {
        "sourceFile": "terms.json",
        "meaning": "Related context; not a causal claim"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "edge:4415",
      "source": "term:upcycling",
      "target": "term:high-nickel",
      "type": "relatedTo",
      "properties": {
        "sourceFile": "terms.json",
        "meaning": "Related context; not a causal claim"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "edge:mentions/upcycling/cathode",
      "source": "term:upcycling",
      "target": "term:cathode",
      "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:relithiation",
      "type": "Term",
      "label": "Relithiation",
      "properties": {
        "id": "relithiation",
        "name": "Relithiation",
        "aka": [
          "cathode regeneration",
          "hydrothermal relithiation"
        ],
        "section": "topic-recycling",
        "definition": "Restoring the lithium a used cathode material has lost, by heating it with a lithium salt in the solid state or in a hot lithium solution, and re-annealing the crystal. It is the core step of direct recycling and works best on a single, known chemistry.",
        "related": [
          "direct-recycling",
          "loss-of-lithium-inventory",
          "cathode-active-material"
        ],
        "url": "https://lemonergy.com/learn/glossary/relithiation/",
        "mentions": [
          "cathode",
          "lithium-salt"
        ]
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "term:direct-recycling",
      "type": "Term",
      "label": "Direct recycling",
      "properties": {
        "id": "direct-recycling",
        "name": "Direct recycling",
        "section": "topic-recycling",
        "definition": "Recovering cathode material with its crystal structure intact and relithiating it for reuse, instead of breaking it down to metal salts. It promises lower energy and cost but must handle a mix of chemistries and ages.",
        "related": [
          "recycling",
          "hydrometallurgy",
          "cathode-active-material",
          "relithiation",
          "upcycling"
        ],
        "url": "https://lemonergy.com/learn/glossary/direct-recycling/",
        "mentions": [
          "cathode"
        ]
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "term:high-nickel",
      "type": "Term",
      "label": "High-nickel cathode",
      "properties": {
        "id": "high-nickel",
        "name": "High-nickel cathode",
        "aka": [
          "Ni-rich"
        ],
        "section": "topic-chemistries",
        "definition": "A layered oxide with 80 % or more nickel, such as NMC811 or NCA. Nickel raises capacity and lowers cobalt content, but the material is less thermally stable, more sensitive to moisture and ages faster at high voltage.",
        "related": [
          "nmc",
          "nca",
          "cathode-active-material",
          "thermal-runaway",
          "cei",
          "mid-nickel"
        ],
        "url": "https://lemonergy.com/learn/glossary/high-nickel/",
        "mentions": [
          "cobalt",
          "layered-oxide"
        ]
      }
    },
    {
      "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"
        ]
      }
    }
  ]
}