Low-Impact Lithium Harvesting Can Vastly Improve Global Mining Production
If you’re still not familiar with Simbol Mining, you probably should be. The company has already won Cleantech’s 2008 Most Promising Technology Award for its zero-waste and zero-carbon mining methods. Now, they hope to build a pilot plant at California’s underground Salton Sea to vastly green up global mining production.
How Low-Impact Lithium Mining Works
Using lithium-rich geothermal wastewater, Simbol Mining pulls the lithium ions out into a solution of lithium chloride. The heat from the geothermal plant also helps with the extraction process. The lithium solution is then stabilized with calcium carbonate for shipping. That’s it. Sounds almost too simple, doesn’t it? Simbol also uses its low-impact techniques to extract EMD (electrolytic manganese dioxide) and high-grade zinc metals.
Why is Green Lithium Important?
Currently, most lithium comes from soil or dried brine, both of which are water-intensive processes. Simbol hopes that the pilot plant will be capable of producing one ton of lithium per month. If all goes well, and Simbol ramps its production at the rate it hopes, within 10 years, Simbol Mining will produce approximately one quarter of all lithium needs worldwide.
If the rate of development of lithium batteries continues, the world will almost certainly see a shortfall with today’s extraction methods. Lithium is a major component in batteries for electric vehicles, cell phones, laptops and many, many other technological gadgets. It’s safe to say that low-impact methods, such as mining from geothermal waste, are a good idea since the lithium ion isn’t likely to fall out of use anytime soon. Plus, mining from waste doesn’t draw require moved mountains or polluted and mercury-laden waterways. We’ll find out what the eco-reality is, but this is a genuinely promising development in the mining industry.
If only diamonds were so easy.
Source: Inhabitant.com
Photo Credit: Matador & Daily Mail
Posted on December 23rd in Solar Research by Craig.