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The lithium extraction process in Salar de Atacama begins with salty brine being pumped out of the ground and then put to rest in evaporation ponds so the remaining brine is slowly enriched in lithium. The evaporation pond stage takes usually 12 to 18 months which is the time it takes for it to reach a lithium concentration of 6%. [24]
In 2021, the lithium revenues were US$936.1 million. [15] The process involves pumping up lithium rich brine from below the ground into shallow pans. Water is evaporated thanks to the strong sun and dry air. [16] The brine contains many different dissolved ions, and as the concentration increases, salts precipitate out of solution and sink.
The brine may be seawater, other surface water, groundwater, or hyper-saline solutions from several industries (e.g., textile industries). [1] It differs from solution mining or in-situ leaching in that those methods inject water or chemicals to dissolve materials which are in a solid state; in brine mining, the materials are already dissolved.
SANTIAGO (Reuters) - Chile's Atacama salt flat is sinking at a rate of 1 to 2 centimeters (0.4 to 0.8 inches) per year due to lithium brine extraction, according to a study by the University of Chile.
The new plan seeks to employ direct lithium extraction (DLE) - a technology that promises to be more sustainable by reinjecting the brine back into the ground once the mineral is extracted.
There are concerns that lithium producers are drawing too much lithium-rich brine, or saltwater, from pools beneath the Atacama, the world's driest desert. A water fight in Chile's Atacama raises ...
Petrolithium is lithium derived from petroleum brine, the mineral-rich salt solution that is brought to the surface during oil and gas production and exploration. Oil companies manage petroleum brine as a waste product, usually by reinjecting the brine back into the ground for enhanced oil recovery or disposal.
Its solubility in water is low relative to other lithium salts. The isolation of lithium from aqueous extracts of lithium ores capitalizes on this poor solubility. Its apparent solubility increases 10-fold under a mild pressure of carbon dioxide; this effect is due to the formation of the metastable lithium bicarbonate, which is more soluble ...