One-step separation of lithium from natural ores in seconds.

Abstract

Lithium (Li), the lowest-density metal, is an optimal element in most battery designs. With the increasing demand for Li, metallurgical techniques using excess acid leaching of mineral ores are common. However, these techniques are limited by multistep processes with adverse environmental impacts caused by secondary waste streams. Here, we show a one-step, acid-free, and alkali-free extraction process for Li from mineral ores with an initial Li content of only 4.8%. By applying flash Joule heating to α-spodumene under an atmosphere of Cl₂ (FJH-Cl₂), LiCl immediately distills from the remaining nonvolatile aluminum and silicon oxides. LiCl with a 97% purity and 94% yield can be achieved, enormously reducing costs and waste emissions. Local processing with FJH-Cl₂ can markedly lessen the complexity and cost of obtaining Li, obviating remote mining and facilitating the world's progression toward cleaner renewable energies, which also paves the way for extracting critical metals from other mineral ores.