High-purity lithium production

Need to maximize brine extraction? Optimize the extraction of lithium carbonate, hydroxide or chloride? Improve product purity and process water recovery alike? Reduce your energy consumption or ensure minimum downtimes? Gain value out of by-products like potash and sodium? Whatever your specific need in your lithium beneficiation, extraction and tailings treatment process is, our aim is to put all the right solutions at your fingertips to ensure your success.

It all started in the 1960s, the first ANDRITZ pusher centrifuge for lithium carbonate, which operated for over 60 years. This represents our commitment to supplying the world’s largest lithium producers with robust separation technologies that withstand a long lifetime of continuous use. For hard rock lithium sources, we offer solutions for the thickening and dewatering for both tailings and spodumene at the mine site, as well as systems for the production of lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate and the removal of impurities at the process plant. Combined with automation and digitalisation technology and proven local service, we are proud to be able to offer the full package from from simulation to installation and process optimization.

Where we fit into your process - examples

A growing market and competition increase the need for an efficient process, which maximizes lithium production, removes impurities and valorizes by-products. Thanks to one of the broadest portfolios of separation solutions and over 60 years of experience in the lithium industry, we can provide a full array of tools. By extracting and valorizing by-products like potash and sodium, improving process water recovery or partially automating the tailings treatment process we are improving efficiency and minimizing environmental impact at the same time.

Do you have questions?  Get in contact with us!

  

Brine concentrate benefication (click on the image to enlarge)

Lithium extraction from brine concentrate (click on the image to enlarge)

Spodumene concentrate beneficiation (click on the image to enlarge)

Lithium extraction from spodumene concentrate (click on the image to enlarge)

Your benefits when working with ANDRITZ

  • Global presence in more than 40 countries on all continents, including Australia, Chile, China or Brazil
  • One of the largest portfolios covering the entire solid/liquid separation process
  • One partner for the whole dewatering process, including the removal of impurities, valorization of by-products and tailings treatment
  • A large track record of solutions which are easy-to-operate and maintain
  • Extensive process know-how, proven by multiple references

Always striving to become better with and for our customers, we are exploring new ways of improving efficiency in separation. One example is the use of centrifuge technology instead of vacuum filtration for dewatering, achieving lower moisture levels and enabling the use of smaller and more energy efficient dryers. Or developing dryers for closed gas loop operation, which are better preserving product quality while conserving energy. In the case of lithium hydroxide, a low-temperature, low-energy drying solution is often required in order to avoid product decomposition.

Dewatering technologies

Peeler centrifuge HZ 125/3.2

Horizontal peeler centrifuge

- High G-Force for best dewatering results and low drying costs

- Fully closed design, avoiding any contamination

- Proven Siphon basket technology for BG Li₂CO₃

Vertical centrifuge with large opening area for inspection

Vertical peeler centrifuge

- Maximum dewatering with up to 1000G

- Optimized cartridge design to achieve shortest downtime for maintenance

- Best fit for Lithium carbonate

se-Krauss-Maffei-SZ-open door-1024

Pusher centrifuge

- Handling of low fsc and operation under CO₂ free conditions possible

- Elimination of the hydro-cyclone in front of the centrifuge possible

- Long lifetime up to 60 years (first pusher centrifuge for lithium carbonate)

Screen scroll centrifuge

- Easy maintenance with the express cartridge

- Reduced wear and particle attrition enabled by the Gentle FeederTM feed system

- Ability to deal with low or varying feed concentrations, high viscosities, or interupted feeding

ANDRITZ Decanter Centrifuge

Decanter centrifuge

- Ability to handle large variations in feed solids, process variability, and plant upsets

- Extensive experience in in high wear mining operations, tailored for high up-time and easy maintenance

- Available in atmospheric, sealed, or pressure designs

Vacuum drum filter

- Maintenance friendly (slow rotating) equipment with a small footprint

- Process adaptions possible (high flexibility)

- Customizing options such as gas-tight to pressure belt designs (ATEX)

ANDRITZ Filter press

Overhead and sidebar filter presses

- Flexible in filtration area, throughput and process changes

- High chemical resistance

- Wide range of automation options up to an intelligent filter press

ANDRITZ horizontal vacuum belt filter (HVBF)

Vacuum belt filter

- Excellent cake washing efficiencies

- Special materials of construction for wetted parts (for handling handle high

brine/corrosive conditions)

- High throughputs with low cake moisture contents

Drying technologies

ANDRITZ fluid bed dryer

Fluid bed drying and cooling systems

- Closed loop systems possible to reduce contamination

- Reliable control of product quality based on proven concepts for temperature control and the choice of thermodynamic equilibrium conditions as design basis

- Steam, thermal oil, (indirect) gas heaters, hot water as well as electrical heating possible

se-products-thermal-systems-Paddle dryer pic2

Paddle dryer

- Uniform product treatment: Applicable for both LiOH monohydrate as well as dehydrated LiOH

- Tungsten-carbide coating available for abrasive product

- Indirect heating results in small off-gas treatment

ANDRITZ plate dryer

Plate dryer

- Accurate residence time resulting in accurate monohydrate content

- Vacuum processing possible

- Gentle process preventing particle breakage

Dedert_spray_dryer_key-visual

Spray dryer

- Full scale plants from 10,000 - 30,000 tons/year production

- Modular semi production development plants (50 - 100 kg/hr evaporation )

- Lower maintenance and simple operation

Automation and Digitalization

Metris addIQ control systems with touch screen panel

Metris addIQ control system upgrade

Metris addIQ control systems deliver

everything from basic automated

movement, up to a point where the machine can recognize changes and imbalances within the process and help you to optimize accordingly.

aa-IDEAS-simulation

IDEAS simulation software

An industry-leading process simulator that offers powerful steady-state and dynamic modeling capabilities as a complete package for all your simulation needs.

Operator OTS - header

Metris Operator Training Simulator (OTS)

Working in the same way as a flight

simulator, Metris OTS providing operators with realistic, hands-on training modules — reducing the risk to both themselves and customer equipment.

metris opp + ace capa

Metris Advanced Control Experts (ACE™)

ACE is an automated “expert operator” that works to fully optimize a process.

Download area
  • On point drying of lithium hydroxide monohydrate

    ANDRITZ fluid bed dryer

    PDF : 252 KB
  • KAB_Lithium_EN_WEB PDF : 2.4 MB
  • Advanced Control Expert (ACE) for Mining

    ACE increases mineral recovery and production, minimizes energy usage, and improves classification.

    PDF : 1.1 MB

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