Lithium Valley Main Report 2018
10 Appendix A -
Glossary of Key Terms Industry 4.0 - The fourth industrial revolution where technology will fundamentally alter the way we live, work, and relate to one another. In its scale, scope, and complexity, the transformation will be unlike anything humankind has experienced before Lithium – The third element on the periodic table, is a highly reactive metal that which is never found in its natural state. To support supply chain and production logistics, is usually refined into either lithium carbonate or lithium hydroxide. There are two major sources for lithium production. ● ● spodumene – a pegmatite (hard rock) based mineral containing lithium in the form of a lithium aluminium silicate compound. Spodumene is Western Australia’s primary source of lithium. As lithium is not available as a metal, the grade of the mineral is based upon the lithium oxide (LiO2) content. With respect to lithium, spodumene is generally considered to: ● ● be the most expensive to extract; ● ● is able to produce product very quickly; ● ● produces the quality most suitable for battery use (the major demand growth area) ● ● is typically concentrated to a 6% lithium oxide content (2.8% lithium) ● ● Lithium Brine deposits – majority of world’s economic reserves of lithium are contained in lake beds, much of these in South America. Lithium from these sources have: ● ● lowest concentration costs (evaporation); ● ● lower purity product; ● ● slow production cycle time. ● ● there is the potential for exploiting sedentary deposits – which contain less than 10% of known lithium reserves, but no significant production expected in the near (5 year) term. Lithium Carbonate – a compound (LiCO3) that can be refined from any of natural sources of lithium (pegmatite, brine, clay). It contains approximately 18.8% lithium by weight. Lithium Carbonate Equivalent (LCE) is a common term to define the tradeable commodity that contains a known proportion of lithium. Lithium Hydroxide –a refined compound (LiOH) containing approximately 16.5% lithium by weight. It is often preferred as a compound for conversion into suitable electrochemical compounds. Lithium Metal Equivalent (LME) – a measure of the lithium actually contained. ● ● 1 kg LCE contains 188 grams of lithium ● ● 1 kg lithium hydroxide contains 165 grams of lithium ● ● 1 Tonne spodumene 6% concentrate contains 27.9kg of lithium
Page 100
Made with FlippingBook Ebook Creator