ORCID

0000-0002-3655-3454 (Pokharel), 0000-0003-3173-6101 (Kumar)

College

College of Engineering & Technology (Batten)

Department

Civil & Environmental Engineering

Graduate Level

Master’s

Graduate Program/Concentration

Civil Engineering

Publication Date

2023

DOI

10.25777/qgy3-7n56

Abstract

The project implements a novel approach to extract lithium from a geothermal brine with minimal water loss. Production of high-capacity lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries for electric vehicles (EV) is believed to be the way to reduce dependence on fossil-fuel based vehicles. Currently, most of the lithium in the world comes from the mining of lithium or the evaporative/concentration of the brine. Mining is not environmentally friendly, and the evaporative process takes 12 months for the completion of the extraction process and results in a large amount of water loss which can lead to scarcity of water. The brines constitute 82% of world reserves while the other 17% is the ore mineral. Hence, there is a need to transition to a sustainable brine extraction process to keep up with the demand of lithium in the market. To address these issues, we are designing and developing a method to efficiently extract lithium from a geothermal brine using a low-cost, simple, easily scalable, and low-water-use adsorption technique. We will produce and utilize the H4Mn4.9Zr0.1O12 compound for the adsorption of lithium from the brine and then use HCl for the desorption of lithium. In the end, we will produce high-purity lithium carbonate that can be used in a Li-ion battery. The major benefit of the system is that the excess geothermal water can eventually be recycled back as there is no production of toxic chemical substances. The process will significantly increase the domestic production of lithium which will eventually eliminate the need for lithium import to produce electric vehicles. The health hazards caused by lithium mining will also be eliminated by the application of this process. Since most of the chemicals are recycled back, net waste during the extraction process is minimum.

Keywords

Adsorption, Geothermal brine, Desorption, Lithium carbonate, Li-ion battery

Disciplines

Other Civil and Environmental Engineering

Files

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Production of Lithium Carbonate from Geothermal Brine by Selective Extraction of Lithium Using a Novel Ion Sieve Method


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