Abstract
In recent years, the demand for lithium (Li) has been on the rise as Li-ion batteries are playing an increasingly important role in powering the global transition to a low-carbon society. In contrast to the predominant production of lithium from hard rock, lithium extraction from brine sources has proven more economical and sustainable. However, substantial challenges remain, including the low efficiency of the extraction process, especially for brines of high salinity, complex composition and poor selectivity against magnesium, the major competing species. Here we show a loose nanofiltration process involving ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) for direct and efficient Li+ extraction as well as effective Mg2+ utilization from salt-lake brines. Taking advantage of selective binding between EDTA4− and Mg2+, our process achieves ultrahigh Mg2+ rejection of 99.85%, ultrafast Li+ flux of ~4.34 mol m−2 h−1 and unprecedented Li+/Mg2+ separation factor (~679) under industrial conditions (127.06 g l−1). More importantly, the Li+ recovery rate reaches 89.90% through a two-stage filtration process, while Mg2+ waste is converted to nanostructured Mg(OH)2 and 98.87% of EDTA4− can be regenerated. Our scalable process minimizes environmental impact while maximizing resource utilization, thereby catalysing the shift toward a more sustainable future.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Number of pages | 13 |
| Journal | Nature Sustainability |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Accepted/In press - 22 Oct 2024 |
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ARC Centre of Excellence for Green Electrochemical Transformation of Carbon Dioxide
Zhang, X., Caruso, R. A., Guo, Z., Knibbe, R., Lee, A., Zhao, C., Li, F., Zhang, J., Rufford, T., Chen, Y., Hou, J., Wilson, K., Smart, S., Martin, D., Doonan, C. J., Shen, Y., Whittaker, A. K., Zhu, J., Bhatia, S., Bell, A., Jiao, F., Ali, S., Henkelman, G., Sargent, E. H., Bazylak, A., Varcoe, J. R., Seger, B., Muir, B. W., Corbos, E., Tulloch, S., Cornejo, A., Snow , J., Chesher, W., Groszmann, M., Nanjundan, A. K. & David, M.
Griffith University, Monash University – Internal University Contribution
14/12/23 → 14/12/29
Project: Research
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Yong, M., Tang, M., Sun, L., Xiong, F., Xie, L., Zeng, G., Ren, X., Wang, K., Cheng, Y., Li, Z., Li, E., Zhang, X. (Accepted/In press). Sustainable lithium extraction and magnesium hydroxide co-production from salt-lake brines. Nature Sustainability. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-024-01435-2
Yong, Ming ; Tang, Meng ; Sun, Liangliang et al. / Sustainable lithium extraction and magnesium hydroxide co-production from salt-lake brines. In: Nature Sustainability. 2024.
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title = "Sustainable lithium extraction and magnesium hydroxide co-production from salt-lake brines",
abstract = "In recent years, the demand for lithium (Li) has been on the rise as Li-ion batteries are playing an increasingly important role in powering the global transition to a low-carbon society. In contrast to the predominant production of lithium from hard rock, lithium extraction from brine sources has proven more economical and sustainable. However, substantial challenges remain, including the low efficiency of the extraction process, especially for brines of high salinity, complex composition and poor selectivity against magnesium, the major competing species. Here we show a loose nanofiltration process involving ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) for direct and efficient Li+ extraction as well as effective Mg2+ utilization from salt-lake brines. Taking advantage of selective binding between EDTA4− and Mg2+, our process achieves ultrahigh Mg2+ rejection of 99.85%, ultrafast Li+ flux of ~4.34 mol m−2 h−1 and unprecedented Li+/Mg2+ separation factor (~679) under industrial conditions (127.06 g l−1). More importantly, the Li+ recovery rate reaches 89.90% through a two-stage filtration process, while Mg2+ waste is converted to nanostructured Mg(OH)2 and 98.87% of EDTA4− can be regenerated. Our scalable process minimizes environmental impact while maximizing resource utilization, thereby catalysing the shift toward a more sustainable future.",
author = "Ming Yong and Meng Tang and Liangliang Sun and Fei Xiong and Lei Xie and Gaofeng Zeng and Xiaoqiong Ren and Ke Wang and Yuan Cheng and Zhikao Li and Enchao Li and Xiwang Zhang and Huanting Wang",
note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Limited 2024.",
year = "2024",
month = oct,
day = "22",
doi = "10.1038/s41893-024-01435-2",
language = "English",
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Yong, M, Tang, M, Sun, L, Xiong, F, Xie, L, Zeng, G, Ren, X, Wang, K, Cheng, Y, Li, Z, Li, E, Zhang, X 2024, 'Sustainable lithium extraction and magnesium hydroxide co-production from salt-lake brines', Nature Sustainability. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-024-01435-2
Sustainable lithium extraction and magnesium hydroxide co-production from salt-lake brines. / Yong, Ming; Tang, Meng; Sun, Liangliang et al.
In: Nature Sustainability, 22.10.2024.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
TY - JOUR
T1 - Sustainable lithium extraction and magnesium hydroxide co-production from salt-lake brines
AU - Yong, Ming
AU - Tang, Meng
AU - Sun, Liangliang
AU - Xiong, Fei
AU - Xie, Lei
AU - Zeng, Gaofeng
AU - Ren, Xiaoqiong
AU - Wang, Ke
AU - Cheng, Yuan
AU - Li, Zhikao
AU - Li, Enchao
AU - Zhang, Xiwang
AU - Wang, Huanting
N1 - Publisher Copyright:© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Limited 2024.
PY - 2024/10/22
Y1 - 2024/10/22
N2 - In recent years, the demand for lithium (Li) has been on the rise as Li-ion batteries are playing an increasingly important role in powering the global transition to a low-carbon society. In contrast to the predominant production of lithium from hard rock, lithium extraction from brine sources has proven more economical and sustainable. However, substantial challenges remain, including the low efficiency of the extraction process, especially for brines of high salinity, complex composition and poor selectivity against magnesium, the major competing species. Here we show a loose nanofiltration process involving ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) for direct and efficient Li+ extraction as well as effective Mg2+ utilization from salt-lake brines. Taking advantage of selective binding between EDTA4− and Mg2+, our process achieves ultrahigh Mg2+ rejection of 99.85%, ultrafast Li+ flux of ~4.34 mol m−2 h−1 and unprecedented Li+/Mg2+ separation factor (~679) under industrial conditions (127.06 g l−1). More importantly, the Li+ recovery rate reaches 89.90% through a two-stage filtration process, while Mg2+ waste is converted to nanostructured Mg(OH)2 and 98.87% of EDTA4− can be regenerated. Our scalable process minimizes environmental impact while maximizing resource utilization, thereby catalysing the shift toward a more sustainable future.
AB - In recent years, the demand for lithium (Li) has been on the rise as Li-ion batteries are playing an increasingly important role in powering the global transition to a low-carbon society. In contrast to the predominant production of lithium from hard rock, lithium extraction from brine sources has proven more economical and sustainable. However, substantial challenges remain, including the low efficiency of the extraction process, especially for brines of high salinity, complex composition and poor selectivity against magnesium, the major competing species. Here we show a loose nanofiltration process involving ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) for direct and efficient Li+ extraction as well as effective Mg2+ utilization from salt-lake brines. Taking advantage of selective binding between EDTA4− and Mg2+, our process achieves ultrahigh Mg2+ rejection of 99.85%, ultrafast Li+ flux of ~4.34 mol m−2 h−1 and unprecedented Li+/Mg2+ separation factor (~679) under industrial conditions (127.06 g l−1). More importantly, the Li+ recovery rate reaches 89.90% through a two-stage filtration process, while Mg2+ waste is converted to nanostructured Mg(OH)2 and 98.87% of EDTA4− can be regenerated. Our scalable process minimizes environmental impact while maximizing resource utilization, thereby catalysing the shift toward a more sustainable future.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85207015820&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1038/s41893-024-01435-2
DO - 10.1038/s41893-024-01435-2
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85207015820
SN - 2398-9629
JO - Nature Sustainability
JF - Nature Sustainability
ER -
Yong M, Tang M, Sun L, Xiong F, Xie L, Zeng G et al. Sustainable lithium extraction and magnesium hydroxide co-production from salt-lake brines. Nature Sustainability. 2024 Oct 22. doi: 10.1038/s41893-024-01435-2
