NSF NEWT ERC Researchers Complete a Technoeconomic Analysis of Selective Separation of Lithium ion
Outcome/Accomplishment
Researchers with the National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded Nanosystems Engineering Research Center (ERC) for Nanotechnology Enabled Water Treatment (NSF NEWT) have designed process trains for each step of lithium carbonate production, modelling key unit operations to represent performance, cost, and energy flows (Figure 1). The team analyzed the resulting process models with techno-economic analysis and life cycle assessment to evaluate feasibility, and then optimized the economic feasibility based on projected potential technical improvements and operational changes. The techno-economic analysis and lifecycle assessment identified which separation technologies and feedwaters have the lowest cost (Figure 2). Results to date show that ion exchange resins are in the best position to recover lithium, while oil- and gas-produced water is the better source.
Impact/Benefits
The global demand for lithium continues to grow as lithium-ion batteries are used and needed in ever-increasing numbers and applications. The known conventional reserves of lithium are limited and may cause future supply issues, while the technologies to acquire them are slow to ramp up and environmentally damaging. To help meet growing demand while overcoming these challenges, NSF NEWT ERC’s work analyzes lithium separation from unconventional water sources, which is economically and environmentally feasible and can be scaled more easily than the conventional design.
Explanation/Background
Currently, lithium carbonate, the most common form of industrial lithium, is primarily produced from lithium-rich brines which are concentrated using solar evaporation ponds. This environmentally destructive method is slow, taking a year or more to sufficiently concentrate the ponds. NSF NEWT ERC researchers, including Menachem Elimelech and Nathanial Cooper of Yale and Paul Westerhoff and Sergi Garcia Segura of Arizona State University, examined two promising alternative separations technologies—ion exchange resins and intercalation electrodes—and applied these technologies to two potential sources of lithium—seawater reverse osmosis concentrate and oil- and gas-produced water—to evaluate their efficacy.
In the separations technologies, oil- and gas-produced water (OGPW) was pretreated with a membrane bioreactor to remove suspended solids and oils. Next, divalent ions were removed from both pretreated OGPW and the seawater reverse osmosis concentrate (SWROC) streams using a nanofiltration (NF) membrane, specifically NF270. The permeate stream from the membrane passed to the separation unit to recover lithium. For the ion exchange unit, the separation was carried out using manganese oxide-impregnated resin beads, while in the intercalation unit, separation was done using titanium-coated iron phosphate. The separations material was then regenerated in water with carbon dioxide (CO2) bubbling through it for the ion exchange resin, or deintercalated in water for the intercalation material. The recovered aqueous lithium was then passed to the conversion train, which started by concentrating the lithium ions using a reverse osmosis (RO) process. The lithium was then precipitated out as lithium carbonate in a continuously stirred tank reactor (CSTR) using sodium carbonate. Finally, the lithium carbonate was filtered and washed to purify it.
The team also evolved process models to analyze the economic, environmental, and technical performance. Specifically, the process trains were designed to identify specific unit operations for lithium recovery; implement cost and performance models for key unit operations; investigate cost and environmental feasibility of the current technology; and, assess the impact on performance of key design and economic changes. Future work will explore how technical improvements with the greatest impact on cost will be determined.
Location
Houston, Texaswebsite
Start Year
Energy and Sustainability
Energy and Smart Infrastructure
Lead Institution
Core Partners
Fact Sheet
Outcome/Accomplishment
Researchers with the National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded Nanosystems Engineering Research Center (ERC) for Nanotechnology Enabled Water Treatment (NSF NEWT) have designed process trains for each step of lithium carbonate production, modelling key unit operations to represent performance, cost, and energy flows (Figure 1). The team analyzed the resulting process models with techno-economic analysis and life cycle assessment to evaluate feasibility, and then optimized the economic feasibility based on projected potential technical improvements and operational changes. The techno-economic analysis and lifecycle assessment identified which separation technologies and feedwaters have the lowest cost (Figure 2). Results to date show that ion exchange resins are in the best position to recover lithium, while oil- and gas-produced water is the better source.
Location
Houston, Texaswebsite
Start Year
Energy and Sustainability
Energy and Smart Infrastructure
Lead Institution
Core Partners
Fact Sheet
Impact/benefits
The global demand for lithium continues to grow as lithium-ion batteries are used and needed in ever-increasing numbers and applications. The known conventional reserves of lithium are limited and may cause future supply issues, while the technologies to acquire them are slow to ramp up and environmentally damaging. To help meet growing demand while overcoming these challenges, NSF NEWT ERC’s work analyzes lithium separation from unconventional water sources, which is economically and environmentally feasible and can be scaled more easily than the conventional design.
Explanation/Background
Currently, lithium carbonate, the most common form of industrial lithium, is primarily produced from lithium-rich brines which are concentrated using solar evaporation ponds. This environmentally destructive method is slow, taking a year or more to sufficiently concentrate the ponds. NSF NEWT ERC researchers, including Menachem Elimelech and Nathanial Cooper of Yale and Paul Westerhoff and Sergi Garcia Segura of Arizona State University, examined two promising alternative separations technologies—ion exchange resins and intercalation electrodes—and applied these technologies to two potential sources of lithium—seawater reverse osmosis concentrate and oil- and gas-produced water—to evaluate their efficacy.
In the separations technologies, oil- and gas-produced water (OGPW) was pretreated with a membrane bioreactor to remove suspended solids and oils. Next, divalent ions were removed from both pretreated OGPW and the seawater reverse osmosis concentrate (SWROC) streams using a nanofiltration (NF) membrane, specifically NF270. The permeate stream from the membrane passed to the separation unit to recover lithium. For the ion exchange unit, the separation was carried out using manganese oxide-impregnated resin beads, while in the intercalation unit, separation was done using titanium-coated iron phosphate. The separations material was then regenerated in water with carbon dioxide (CO2) bubbling through it for the ion exchange resin, or deintercalated in water for the intercalation material. The recovered aqueous lithium was then passed to the conversion train, which started by concentrating the lithium ions using a reverse osmosis (RO) process. The lithium was then precipitated out as lithium carbonate in a continuously stirred tank reactor (CSTR) using sodium carbonate. Finally, the lithium carbonate was filtered and washed to purify it.
The team also evolved process models to analyze the economic, environmental, and technical performance. Specifically, the process trains were designed to identify specific unit operations for lithium recovery; implement cost and performance models for key unit operations; investigate cost and environmental feasibility of the current technology; and, assess the impact on performance of key design and economic changes. Future work will explore how technical improvements with the greatest impact on cost will be determined.