Magic technology rewrites lithium production -Lithium - Ion Battery Equipment

Magic technology rewrites lithium production -Lithium - Ion Battery Equipment



Not long ago, Zhao Zhongwei, deputy dean of the School of Metallurgy and Environment of Central South University, and his team "packed" a container full of "black technology" equipment, and "tugged a box with a port" from Changsha, Hunan to "Golmud," Qinghai.

A huge "black box" container with several water pipes that can "turn decay into magic". The local salt lake brine with high "magnesium-to-lithium ratio" entering the "black box" from one end of the tube is purified into high-quality "South American salt lake brine" when it flows out. No chemical reagents are added in the whole process, and no harmful chemicals are produced.(Lithium - Ion Battery Equipment)

Such on-site "magic" made the salt lake lithium production enterprises who came to observe them feel elated. The original disruptive technology involved in the "magic", which may rewrite the production capacity of lithium products in my country and the world, was "transferred" from Central South University at a high price of 104.8 million yuan.

The "ratio" of brine drop has become a bottleneck in the development of lithium resources

When it comes to lithium, people are no strangers. As large as new energy vehicle power batteries, as small as mobile phone batteries, the main raw materials are lithium.

Lithium is "reused" in relation to its extremely abundant reserves around the world. According to data from the United States Geological Survey, the global lithium reserves are 13 million tons, and the lithium resources are 39.5 million tons. Among them, 76% of lithium resources exist in salt lake brine. 85% of the proven lithium resources in my country also exist in salt lake brine.

Salt lake brine is mainly distributed in the Andes Plateau of South America and the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau of my country. Generally, the higher the average lithium concentration in brine and the lower the "magnesium-lithium ratio", the more favorable it is for lithium extraction.

The "magnesium-to-lithium ratio" of most salt lake brines in my country is dozens or even hundreds of times higher than that of foreign high-quality salt lake brines. With the existing technology, it is difficult to achieve large-scale, high-efficiency, clean and Economic development and production. Due to the difficulty of reducing the "magnesium-lithium ratio" of brine, the development of high "magnesium-lithium ratio" brine resources in my country and even the world cannot significantly release the production capacity. Therefore, although my country is a big country in lithium resources, its external dependence on lithium resources is still as high as 70%. Importing high-quality brine from South America to extract lithium is the norm.

How to reduce the "magnesium-lithium ratio" has become a key technical bottleneck for the development of brine resources with high magnesium-lithium ratio in salt lakes, and it is also a difficult problem for industry experts.

New technology is expected to bring unprecedented release of lithium production capacity

Zhao Zhongwei's School of Metallurgy and Environment, Central South University, has one of the best housekeeping skills in preparing lithium battery cathode materials by metallurgical methods. "Lithium battery cathode materials can be prepared by metallurgical methods, and in turn, lithium battery cathode materials can be used as 'tools' to extract lithium." Such a subversive salt pond brine extraction technology, Zhao Zhongwei on May 14th In the narration to the reporter of Science and Technology Daily, the principle is as simple as a layer of "window paper" that can be broken with one stab.

However, it took more than ten years to "pierce" this layer of "window paper". In the past ten years, Zhao Zhongwei's team has carried out a lot of research, and finally proposed an electrochemical deintercalation method, and developed related equipment and processes, which can achieve efficient and selective extraction and enrichment of lithium from high "magnesium-to-lithium ratio" salt lake brine .

Although the technology has just been born in the laboratory, and there is no "eight word" from the industrialization, it does not affect the interest of lithium companies. Technology is expected to help my country and the world develop lithium resources and bring about an unprecedented release of lithium production capacity.

Central South University just spread the news among a group of "friends circles" of companies concerned with lithium extraction technology from brine, and immediately attracted many companies to extend an olive branch to "seek cooperation".
 

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