MIT researchers unveil a low-energy, circular process to extract lithium from hard rock
TL;DR
MIT researchers have developed a room-temperature, low-energy, closed-loop method that dissolves spodumene using an ammonium fluoride-water mix to release lithium, aluminum, and silica, with reagents recovered for reuse to nearly zero waste. The process could halve hard‑rock lithium extraction costs and be competitive with brine methods, demonstrated across 17 spodumene sources and moving toward commercialization via Rock Zero (MIT spinout); the work, published in Science, aims to boost onshore critical-mineral supply for batteries.
- MIT researchers develop a low-cost technique to get lithium out of rocks MIT News
- How a new extraction process could unlock the world’s lithium MIT Technology Review
- Researchers develop a new process to get lithium out of rocks Ars Technica
- 'You can change the lithium market': MIT scientists say their breakthrough extraction technique could solve a global battery issue — and make them cheaper to produce TechRadar
- MIT Scientists May Have Found a Way to Pull Lithium From Rocks Without Trashing the Planet Gizmodo
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