Koen Binnemans and colleagues from Belgium and the US have a new US patent application relating to solvent extraction for selective lithium recovery. The application was published on the 18th of July 2024. The application is registered as United States Patent Application 20240240280.
A lithium extraction process can include a solvent extraction unit configured to receive an aqueous feed stream from an upstream flow path, the aqueous feed stream including lithium cations and at least one additional monovalent species of cation; a waste-salt separation unit configured to receive an aqueous waste-water stream from a first downstream flow path, the first downstream flow path connecting the waste-salt separation unit in fluid communication with the solvent extraction unit; and a lithium carbonate production unit configured to receive an aqueous lithium-rich stream from a second downstream flow path, the second downstream flow path connecting the lithium carbonate production unit in fluid communication with the solvent extraction unit.
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