T257 The Geology and Environmental Impacts of Lithium Resources in North America and other Globally Significant Deposits II

Wednesday, 12 October 2022
1:30 PM - 5:30 PM
603

STRATEGIES TO IMPROVE SUSTAINABILITY OF LITHIUM EXTRACTION FROM SPODUMENE

Paper number: T257-10
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 3:40 PM – 3:55 PM

Authors

Abstract

With the rising demand for lithium-ion batteries, mining of lithium minerals and their refining to lithium chemicals has grown rapidly over the last years. At the same time, environmental impact and sustainability are increasingly important for lithium extraction from mineral sources to remain viable in the future.

The conventional extraction of lithium from spodumene via calcination, acid roasting, leaching, purification and crystallisation achieves high lithium recoveries and lithium hydroxide purities but is also energy- and chemical-intense and produces large amounts of low-value by-products. Large proportions of spodumene ore are discarded as waste during mining and processing because of the strict quality specifications for spodumene concentrate imposed by the calcination step. Furthermore, melting and clinker formation during calcination can degrade lithium recovery from spodumene that has been partly altered to muscovite and cookeite.

The presentation will illustrate strategies that address the above challenges, including improved understanding of calcination and the effect of alteration and low grades on lithium recovery, as well as an alternative extraction route that results in marketable by-products.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 54, No. 6

doi: 10.1130/abs/2022AM-383830

© Copyright 2022 The Geological Society of America (GSA), all rights reserved. Permission is hereby granted to the author(s) of this abstract to reproduce and distribute it freely, for noncommercial purposes. Permission is hereby granted to any individual scientist to download a single copy of this electronic file and reproduce up to 20 paper copies for noncommercial purposes advancing science and education, including classroom use, providing all reproductions include the complete content shown here, including the author information. All other forms of reproduction and/or transmittal are prohibited without written permission from GSA Copyright Permissions.