The Problem of Lithium Accessibility
We need urgent innovation in the lithium mining sector
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In the previous article, I elaborated that we don’t have the problem of lithium availability. There is enough lithium on Earth to satisfy all of our technological needs and new deposits are regularly discovered. According to the US Geological Survey, Earth has ~80 million tonnes of lithium. In a hypothetical scenario where all lithium is used for electric vehicles, and assuming an average of 8 kilograms of lithium per vehicle, we can have 10 billion electric vehicles running on lithium-ion batteries. That is a large number, considering that currently, we have around 1.5 billion cars on the road, globally. If you add lithium recycling to the mix, then we can definitely say that we have enough lithium.
The problem we have, however, is that of lithium accessibility. Getting to all of that lithium is tricky, especially if we want to do it in an eco-friendly manner. Mines are expensive, polluting, and take years to be fully operational. The sustainability promise of lithium is in opposition to the process of obtaining lithium, and not all lithium sources are cost-efficient. That is why new approaches to lithium extraction are key.
Brines are the traditional lithium source, constituting 2/3 of global lithium production. The Lithium Triangle, nestled between Argentina, Bolivia, and Chile, is an example of a region rich in lithium-containing brines. The so-called salares are salt lakes lying on top of mineral-rich brines, which are extracted and then processed to separate lithium from other minerals. This approach uses up to 2000 liters of water per kilogram of lithium. Such a water-intensive process is problematic, especially in regions that are as dry as the ones where salares are found.
To combat the harmful effects of lithium extraction, we need innovative approaches to extracting it. Direct lithium extraction (DLE) is a technology that has risen to prominence in recent years due to its advantageous economic and environmental promise:1
DLE recycles over 90% of water, which means that it can be safely deployed in arid regions such as the Lithium Triangle.
Processing times are much faster. In mere days you can go from extraction of the brine to lithium production. Contrast it with the traditional brine processing which needs months to produce industrial-grade lithium.
Areal footprint is low, since it doesn’t require large evaporation ponds or open-pit mines which are found in traditional brine and hard rock lithium mining, respectively. In fact, it requires 95% less land than traditional lithium extraction from brines.
Lithium recovery rates can be as high as 70-90%, meaning you get more bang for your buck. Current evaporation ponds recover only 40-60% of lithium.
All of the above makes DLE an attractive alternative and numerous development projects are popping up all over the world. Companies like Lilac Solutions, Livent, Cornish Lithium, Lithium de France, International Battery Metals, and others are all attempting to bring DLE to full-scale industrial production. Just last year, the US Department of Energy allocated 11 million USD for DLE projects. Yet, it remains to be seen if DLE can deliver what it promises at scale. The 2024-25 period will be critical to understand the commercial viability of DLE.
Will DLE solve all of our lithium woes? Probably not. Nevertheless, it is exciting to witness an innovation in the mining sector. If DLE proves to be successful for lithium extraction, there is no stopping its use for the extraction of other elements, fundamentally changing the mining industry. Moreover, if DLE from oil field brines proves to be profitable, it can also change the oil industry.
Having multiple sources of lithium that are spread around the world is necessary to have a resilient post-oil economy. It can also shorten the supply chain and create jobs. Getting to lithium in a cheaper way, will lower the cost of batteries and thus electric vehicles. This will contribute to their mass adoption. So, really, we have no choice but to be innovative. Without a revolution in lithium extraction, there will be no revolution in sustainability.
That’s all for now. Until next time 🔋!
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Exact advantages are subject to the exact DLE mechanism of extraction: ion exchange, electromembranes, nanofiltration, precipitation, …