Raw Materials

Raw Materials

Lithium | Innovations In Extraction

Lithium | Innovations In Extraction

Direct Lithium Extraction Characteristics

Various processes for lithium extraction (DLE) encompass: 1. Adsorption (Sorption): Employing sorbents to selectively cling to lithium, this technique eliminates unwanted ions through a washing procedure. Companies: SunResin, IBM, Summit Nanotech, Vulcan Energy, Koch Technical 2. Ion Exchange: Through a physicochemical process, ionic contaminants are separated as undesired ions are substituted with ions of similar electrical charge. The ion-exchange material acts as a selective sieve, permitting only lithium (and hydrogen) ions to traverse. Companies: Lilac Solutions 3. Solvent Extraction: Using organic solutions containing solvent and extractant, lithium is extracted from brines, undergoing a transformation into LiCl (or ions) through chemical or physical means. Companies: Solvay, Adionics 4. Membrane Separation: Employing membrane technologies like nanofiltration and reverse osmosis, this approach selectively removes hardness (Mg, Ca) and recovers lithium. Companies: EnergyX 5. Electrochemical Separation: Utilizing electrochemical cells, this method directly converts LiCl to LiOH or Li2CO3, bypassing intermediates such as calcium hydroxide. Presently in its early stages, it has not yet reached commercialization.

Source: Goldman Sachs report

Hard rock

Brine

Mining

Evaporation

DLE

Production times (extraction to production)

Weeks to months

Months to years

Hours to days

Lithium recovery rates

~60-80% (processing)

~US$23-34,000/tpa LCE

~US$26-34,000/tpa LCE

Capex cost Vary with grade Opex cost

~US$3,300-4,900/tpa LCE

~US$3,300-4,900/tpa LCE

Lithium product

Spodumene (~5-6% Li2O)

Lithium carbonate (Li2CO3), Lithium Chloride (LiCl) Lithium hydroxide (LiOH)

Lithium carbonate (Li2CO3), Lithium Chloride (LiCl) Lithium hydroxide (LiOH)

Process

Heating, cooling, crushing & roasting

Atmospheric evaporation, plant processing

Different process like adsorption, ion exchange, solvent extraction, membrane separation, electrochemical separation

Water consumption

High

High

Low-Medium

Energy consumption

High

Low (solar evaporation)

Medium

Emissions

High

Low

Low

Extracted from the PDF; charts and images may read imperfectly.