Low-Temp Method for Extracting Lithium from Abundant Rocks Could Change Battery Economics
MIT researchers have developed a low-temperature, closed-loop process for extracting lithium from hard rock minerals. This method is estimated to be half the cost of traditional extraction and significantly reduces environmental waste.
Why it matters
Lowering the cost and environmental impact of lithium extraction is critical for meeting the global demand for electric vehicle batteries by 2040.
A team of researchers from MIT and elsewhere have developed a low-temperature process for extracting battery-grade lithium from the most common type of lithium-bearing mineral. Until now, extracting lithium from hard rock is an energy- and waste-intensive process that's often far more expensive than getting lithium from brine water, which also has major environmental drawbacks.
Currently, lithium hard-rock extraction involves baking the rock at over 1,000 C and chemically leaching it to extract lithium. The rest of the rock is discarded.
The new process uses a liquid reagent to dissolve the rock into the useful forms of its constituent parts - not just battery-ready lithium salts, but also smelter-grade alumina and cement-ready silica. After the minerals are extracted, the solvent and reagent can be recovered and used again so that waste levels approach zero.
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