Lithium

Accelerating high-purity lithium production with lower energy costs

Need to maximize brine extraction? Optimize the extraction of lithium carbonate, hydroxide or chloride? Improve product purity and process water recovery alike? Reduce your energy consumption or ensure minimum downtimes? Gain value out of by-products like potash and sodium? Whatever your specific need in your beneficiation, extraction and tailings treatment process is, our aim is to put all the right solutions at your fingertips to ensure your success.

Lithium is highly sought after raw material with rising demand, due the pivotal role of li-ion batteries in electric vehicles, potable electronics and storage for renewable energy. A growing market and competition increase the need for an efficient production, which maximizes lithium, removes impurities and valorizes by-products. Thanks to one of the broadest portfolios of separation solutions and over 60 years of experience in the lithium industry, we can provide a full array of tools for optimizing both plant performance and product purity.

Decades of expertise in lithium mining

It all started in the 1960s, the first ANDRITZ pusher centrifuge for lithium carbonate, which operated for over 60 years. This represents our commitment to supplying the world’s largest lithium producers with robust separation technologies that withstand a long lifetime of continuous use.

For hard rock lithium sources, we offer systems for the thickening and dewatering for both tailings and spodumene at the mine site, as well as systems for the production of lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate and the removal of impurities at the process plant. These technologies include vacuum drum filters, vacuum belt filters, filter presses, as well as pusher and peeler centrifuges.

ANDRITZ also has the ability to provide complete dewatering and drying systems for better overall efficiency. We have global references for cases where our new technology is more efficient in the final steps than previous technologies. In addition, we are continuously developing new technologies specifically adapted for lithium mines such as SmartFILTERCLOTH.

Your benefits when working with ANDRITZ

Global presence in more than 40 countries on all continents, including Australia, Chile, China or Brazil
One of the largest portfolios covering the entire solid/liquid separation process
One partner for the whole dewatering process, including the removal of impurities, valorization of by-products and tailings treatment
A large track record of solutions which are easy-to-operate and maintain
Extensive process know-how, proven by multiple references
Modern automation solutions (Metris addIQ control systems)

Where we fit into your process - examples

Brine concentrate benefication

Lithium extraction from brine concentrate

process_Lithium_Spodumene concentrate benefication

Spodumene concentrate beneficiation

Lithium extraction from spodumene concentrate

Improving efficiency and quality

Always striving to become better with and for our customers, we are exploring new ways of improving efficiency in separation. One example is the use of centrifuge technology instead of vacuum filtration for dewatering, achieving lower moisture levels and enabling the use of smaller and more energy efficient dryers. Or developing dryers for closed gas loop operation, which are better preserving product quality while conserving energy. In the case of lithium hydroxide, a low-temperature, low-energy drying solution is often required in order to avoid product decomposition.

By extracting and valorizing by-products like potash and sodium, improving process water recovery or partially automating the tailings treatment process we are also contributing to improving efficiency and minimizing environmental impact at the same time – a goal that we share with our partner Ionic Mineral Technologies (read more).

Advanced automation for lithium producers

Customers with new or existing operating plants worldwide are benefiting from ANDRITZ turn-key control system solutions, customized to fit their specific process and plant. Process areas include dewatering and drying automation solutions to enhance availability, optimize operations, reduce energy consumption, and minimize production costs. This includes the Metris addIQ control systems (part of Metris, the ANDRITZ brand for digital solutions), as well as special solutions like the IDEAS simulation technology for mining operations or Metris addIQ ACE, which was designed to optimize performance of multiple filter press lines.