What are the production methods for lithium carbonate?
Lithium carbonate is a common lithium salt with a wide range of applications, such as medicine, ceramics, glass, lithium batteries and other fields. There are various production methods of lithium carbonate, the following are some of the common methods:
1. Ore carbonate method
Ore carbonate method is one of the most commonly used methods to produce lithium carbonate. This method takes lithium ore such as lithium pyroxene and lithium feldspar as raw materials, and prepares lithium carbonate through high-temperature heating, acid and alkali treatment, precipitation, drying and other steps. Therein, the lithium ore is heated at a high temperature and reacts with carbonate to generate products such as lithium carbonate and silicate. Then, through the acid and alkali treatment, precipitation, drying and other steps, the lithium carbonate is separated from the reaction liquid to get the final product.
2. Salt lake brine method
Salt lake brine method is a method to extract lithium carbonate from salt lake brine. This method separates lithium carbonate from brine through evaporation, precipitation, acid and alkali treatment and other steps. The lithium content in the brine of a salt lake is usually low, and a large amount of brine is required to extract the right amount of lithium carbonate. Therefore, the salt lake brine method is more costly, but sustainable and environmentally friendly.
3. Recycling method
The recycling method is a method of extracting lithium carbonate from waste materials. The method includes the extraction of lithium carbonate from waste lithium batteries, glass, ceramics and other substances. Among them, waste lithium batteries are the most common recycling source. The recycling method is sustainable and environmentally friendly, but it is costly and requires specialised recycling equipment and processing techniques.
4. Chemical synthesis method
Chemical synthesis is a method of preparing lithium carbonate by chemical reaction. This method usually uses compounds containing lithium as raw materials, such as lithium chloride, lithium hydroxide, etc., and generates lithium carbonate by reacting with carbonate. The advantage of the chemical synthesis method is that it can be mass-produced under laboratory conditions, but it is more costly and requires the use of a large number of organic solvents and chemical raw materials.