Battery Materials R&D Centre of Excellence, Tees Valley: Testing and selecting an innovative, low-carbon, lithium pyrometallurgy solution for deployment

该联盟由两名当地合作者组成，将以项目负责人开展的现有概念验证工作为基础：* **Green Lithium** (lead)：位于teesside的锂离子电池供应链新兴专家，拥有来自其全规模锂工厂（full- wide plant）的广泛锂加工设计/测试经验。** *材料加工研究所（MPI）（合作伙伴）：总部位于米德尔斯堡的世界领先的矿物加工研究机构，在矿物热处理方面经验丰富，提供专业知识和物理试验设施。**市场机遇**快速增长的电池电动汽车（EV）和存储行业要求电池生产迅速升级。电池供应链包括阴极活性材料（CAM）制造商、阴极制造商、电池制造商（gigafactory）和汽车原始设备制造商（oem），它们必须确保上游锂化学品的供应。英国/欧盟目前依赖中国精炼锂化工产品进口，导致价格/数量存在重大不确定性。陆上锂精炼对于满足欧洲2030年每年约80万吨的电动汽车需求至关重要，同时储能需求也不可预测\[_source:BechmarkMineralIntelligence,2022_\]。**意义**为了保持先发优势，Green Lithium计划在提赛德（Teesside）建造世界上第一个大规模的锂工厂（规模工厂），采用碱浸湿法冶金工艺生产一水氢氧化锂。制备湿法冶金原料需要通过煅烧将含锂矿物α -锂辉石精矿（锂辉石）分解为β -锂辉石，这是一种能源密集型的火冶工艺，锂辉石被加热到高温并循环以实现一致的热能穿透。根据绿色锂公司之前的生命周期评估（LCA），低能耗、清洁能源的煅烧可以达到41% reduction in carbon emissions \[_source:Minviro,2022_\] \[_see:Q4-Appendix_\]. Green Lithium's goal is to produce carbon-net-zero lithium. That is only achievable through deployment of electrified or hydrogen-enabled pyrometallurgy processes, which do not exist at scale today.**Innovation**Green Lithium's Scale-Up Plant process flowsheet already has clearly defined second-stage 'alkali-leach' hydrometallurgy and third-stage crystallisation requirements.However, its first-stage pyrometallurgy has greater optionality, with various potentially low-carbon options available. These remain untested ahead of selection. This project therefore accelerates Green Lithium's Scale-Up Plant development by testing which low-carbon pyrometallurgy equipment should be deployed to target net-zero emissions and meet lithium production requirements, namely second-stage hydrometallurgy input requirements.Competitors have not sought to deploy lithium scale-up plants; this project will help keep UK-based Green Lithium ahead of international competition by enabling development of its world-first Scale-Up Plant.**Outcome**This 12-month industrial research project, leading to key Scale-Up Plant pyrometallurgy equipment selection and process design, will drive significant export and profitability growth over a 5-year launch period, stimulating substantive Scale-Up Plant-specific revenues (£46.0m), UK R&D investment (£3.4m), and 13.0 new FTEs operating the plant.

Comprising two local collaborators, the consortium will build upon existing proof-of-concept work undertaken by the project lead:* **Green Lithium** (lead): Teesside-based emerging expert in the lithium-ion battery supply chain, with extensive lithium processing design/testing experience from its full-scale lithium plant (Full-Scale Plant).* **Materials Processing Institute** (MPI) (collaborator): Middlesbrough-based, world-leading minerals processing research body, experienced in thermal processes on minerals, providing expertise and physical trial facilities provision.**Market opportunity**The fast-growing battery-electric vehicle (EV) and storage industries demand battery production upscales rapidly. Battery supply chains include cathode-active-material (CAM) manufacturers, cathode manufacturers, battery manufacturers (gigafactories) and automotive original-equipment manufacturers (OEMs), which must secure upstream lithium chemical supplies.The UK/EU currently depend on Chinese refined lithium chemical imports, driving major price/volume uncertainty. Onshore lithium refining is essential to meet the c.800,000tonne-per-annum (tpa) European 2030 demand from EVs, with unforecasted demand from energy-storage \[_source:BechmarkMineralIntelligence,2022_\].**Significance**Helping retain first-mover advantage, Green Lithium plans to build the world's first scale-up lithium plant in Teesside (Scale-Up Plant), deploying the alkali-leach hydrometallurgy process for lithium hydroxide monohydrate production.Preparing raw material for hydrometallurgy requires decrepitation of lithium-bearing mineral alpha-spodumene concentrate (spodumene) to beta-spodumene through calcination, an energy-intensive pyrometallurgy process where spodumene is heated to high temperature and circulated to achieve consistent thermal-energy penetration.Based on Green Lithium's previous life-cycle assessment (LCA), low-energy, clean-energy calcining can lead to a 41% reduction in carbon emissions \[_source:Minviro,2022_\] \[_see:Q4-Appendix_\]. Green Lithium's goal is to produce carbon-net-zero lithium. That is only achievable through deployment of electrified or hydrogen-enabled pyrometallurgy processes, which do not exist at scale today.**Innovation**Green Lithium's Scale-Up Plant process flowsheet already has clearly defined second-stage 'alkali-leach' hydrometallurgy and third-stage crystallisation requirements.However, its first-stage pyrometallurgy has greater optionality, with various potentially low-carbon options available. These remain untested ahead of selection. This project therefore accelerates Green Lithium's Scale-Up Plant development by testing which low-carbon pyrometallurgy equipment should be deployed to target net-zero emissions and meet lithium production requirements, namely second-stage hydrometallurgy input requirements.Competitors have not sought to deploy lithium scale-up plants; this project will help keep UK-based Green Lithium ahead of international competition by enabling development of its world-first Scale-Up Plant.**Outcome**This 12-month industrial research project, leading to key Scale-Up Plant pyrometallurgy equipment selection and process design, will drive significant export and profitability growth over a 5-year launch period, stimulating substantive Scale-Up Plant-specific revenues (£46.0m), UK R&D investment (£3.4m), and 13.0 new FTEs operating the plant.