Abstract
Lithium Australia NL (ASX:LIT) and ANSTO Minerals have been working together since 2015 on the development of halide accelerated leaching for the extraction of lithium from lithium-bearing micas, spodumene and clays. This technology has been termed SiLeach® process. The driving force behind development of the SiLeach® process, initially, was to develop a hydrometallurgical process to extract lithium from micas and spodumene without the need for the energy intensive, high temperature processing conventionally applied to lithium extraction. This driving force remains today and continues to hold promise in realising the value of previously under-utilised lithium resources. A comprehensive understanding of the technology and its applicability to the processing of micas and spodumene currently exists, and the flowsheet has been rigorously piloted. Production of battery grade lithium carbonate has been demonstrated.
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Notes
- 1.
Further process development and modelling effort has identified an alternative flowsheet which is under evaluation as part of preparations for the Front End Engineering Design (FEED) study for the LSPP. This flowsheet is part of a process patent application by Lithium Australia NL and cannot be discussed in detail.
- 2.
This step is part of a process patent application by Lithium Australia NL and cannot be discussed in detail.
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Griffith, C., Griffin, A., Roper, A., Skalski, A. (2018). Development of SiLeach® Technology for the Extraction of Lithium Silicate Minerals. In: Davis, B., et al. Extraction 2018. The Minerals, Metals & Materials Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-95022-8_188
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-95022-8_188
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