Direct lithium extraction: securing lithium’s energy future
EnergyX is leading the charge in truly sustainable lithium production with its in-house developed direct lithium extraction technique.
Why is lithium so important?
“Lithium’s physical properties make it one of the best materials for storing energy,” Teague explained to IE. As the third element on the periodic table, lithium is both lightweight and highly energy-dense.
He explained that this combination makes it ideal for applications where portability is crucial. Especially for applications like EVs and smartphones. Egan elaborated on lithium’s unique role in batteries, highlighting its importance for mobility applications.
“If you just have a battery sitting on the ground, weight doesn’t matter. But energy density is critical if you have to move it in a car or a plane,” he said. This energy density is why lithium has become the backbone of modern rechargeable batteries.
Before lithium-ion batteries rose to prominence, lithium had limited applications. “The total global market for lithium was in the low hundreds of thousands of tons,” Egan explained.
“It was mostly used in pharmaceuticals, glass, and greases.” However, lithium became indispensable as EVs gained traction and climate change initiatives spurred decarbonization. “Lithium quickly became essential with electric vehicles and the need to store energy without emitting carbon,” he added.
What is EnergyX’s direct lithium extraction?
Traditional lithium extraction processes like evaporation ponds are slow, inefficient, and environmentally damaging. “The old process takes 18 months and only recovers 30–40% of the lithium,” Egan pointed out.
One major problem with this technique, is that it requires vast amounts of land and water, thereby making them unsustainable as demand surges. EnergyX developed Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE) technology to address these challenges, dramatically improving efficiency and sustainability.
“With DLE, instead of 18 months, we can process lithium in one to two days,” Egan explained. The method also boasts recovery rates of over 90% while using only 1/100th of the land footprint compared to traditional evaporation ponds.