Snowflakes are single crystals of water that have achieved a sufficient size to fall through the Earth’s atmosphere as snow. Each flake nucleates around a dust particle in supersaturated air masses by attracting supercooled cloud water droplets, which freeze and accrete in crystal form. Complex shapes emerge as the flake moves through differing temperature and humidity zones in the atmosphere, such that individual snowflakes differ from one another.
What has this to do with batteries you may ask?
Well, an important component of electric batteries is lithium and although categories can be placed on geological deposits of lithium, the reality is no two deposits are alike. This is particularly true of the lithium brine groups of deposits that occur as accumulations of saline groundwater that are enriched in dissolved lithium and other constituents. They are formed in closed basins in arid regions particularly in the salt flats (or puna) of Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia — often referred to as the “Lithium Triangle” that are estimated to contain more than three-quarters of the world’s known available supply of lithium.
Despite the close proximity of these basinal deposits, variations in local geology and hydrogeology have led to variance in the stratigraphy of the basin infill and the location of the brine waters. In addition, the chemistry of the brine waters themselves is highly variable (Table 1). It is therefore essential to determine these variances in the evaluation of brine deposits, the main reasons being:
- It ensures a fair estimate of the resource by understanding deposit morphology
- It determines the most efficient locations for brine extraction and the rate of extraction to avoid dilution from surrounding waterways
- It informs the process required by determining not just economic components but also impurities that may form part of the final products
By doing this, SRK has been able to complete a number of feasibility studies for brine producers and provide a sustainable, economic and technically efficient solution to various projects.
References: (1 Garrett, 2004; 2 Munk et al 2016; 3 Kesler et al., 2012; 4 Evans, 2014).
