Optimizing lithium carbonate recovery through gas-liquid reactive crystallization of lithium hydroxide and carbon dioxide

OpenAlex · İngilizce

• Reactive crystallization of Li 2 CO 3 in a semi-batch reactor using carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) has been studied in the literature with an aim to enhance recovery of lithium from primary and secondary resources. However, an in-depth understanding of control variables that can enhance the yield of the recovery process is missing. Here, we discuss the fundamentals of Li 2 CO 3 reactive crystallization from LiOH solution by carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) injection to optimize lithium recovery. The significant factors affecting Li 2 CO 3 crystallization, such as initial LiOH concentration, temperature, and CO 2 flow rate, are investigated. The solid-liquid transitions and chord length distributions are monitored during Li 2 CO 3 crystallization using in situ focused beam reflectance measurement (FBRM) and particle vision measurement (PVM) probes. Our results show that maximum lithium recovery corresponds to system pH maximum, influenced by the formation of soluble lithium bicarbonate. Furthermore, the work proposes an optimized CO 2 injection strategy for maximizing lithium recovery in the form of Li 2 CO 3 precipitates. • Lithium recovery from lithium hydroxide solution as lithium carbonate. • Carbon dioxide is used as a crystallizing agent. • In situ focused beam reflectance measurement (FBRM) probe confirms Li 2 CO 3 dissolution. • Optimization of carbon dioxide injection is proposed to maximize the lithium recovery.