LithTech, an Australian firm, has announced its 2023 capital raising drive to enhance its magnesium separation process, which increases the brine extraction of essential raw elements, including nickel, lithium, cobalt, copper and natural graphite, used in EV batteries.

After lab-scale testing, the Dow Centre at the University of Queensland has provided financial and technical support, allowing the company to commercialize the technology. Results showed that the technology preserved 90-95% of the lithium during extraction, compared to 40-45% for previous approaches. This technique can also sustainably treat mining waste streams and tailings and treat or desalinate wastewater, producing hydrogen and magnesium hydroxide. The modular units can be retrofitted onto existing infrastructure or used to construct new plants while increasing efficiency to reduce costs.

“We believe we are on track to develop a disruptive technology which will fast-track battery grade metal production while generating a higher yield of limited resources,” said LithTech’s Director, David Vinson. “Worldwide reserves stand at approximately 22 million tons, according to the US Geological Survey, which is sufficient to produce just under 2.5 billion batteries but not enough to maintain us for the next hundred years.”

Source: LithTech