E3 Lithium Ltd – a leading, Alberta-based lithium developer and extraction technology innovator – has successfully produced lithium carbonate, the last major step in a conventional process before conversion to battery quality lithium hydroxide monohydrate (LHM).
The test work used concentrate generated from brines located in E3 Lithium’s Clearwater Project Area, produced during the direct lithium extraction (DLE) testing completed in preparation for the pilot plant.
E3 Lithium has engaged a major lithium refining technology and equipment vendor to develop the downstream lithium production processes in preparation for the upcoming pre-feasibility study. The testing was conducted to treat a sample of concentrate, or eluate, produced by DLE technology. The test program has successfully progressed through the coarse purification and concentration phases, and the eluate has been converted into lithium carbonate. The final steps include further downstream polishing to achieve the desired purity and then conversion of the carbonate into battery-grade LHM.
As the pilot plant produces more concentrate, E3 Lithium will be creating more carbonate and LHM for commercial development purposes.
Chris Doornbos, President and CEO of E3 Lithium, comments:
“Producing high quality carbonate from our Leduc brines with a major equipment vendor is an incredibly exciting milestone for the company. While downstream lithium refining processes are already commercially operating, demonstrating the success of these processes on E3 Lithium’s brine provides more certainty for our commercial processes.”
The objectives of the test programme are to validate the downstream flowsheet, generate data required for engineering design purposes and produce LHM for potential offtake partners. E3 Lithium will provide updates as its test programme progresses.