Application and Analysis of Bipolar Membrane Electrodialysis for LiOH Production at High Electrolyte Concentrations: Current Scope and Challenges

The objective of this work was to evaluate obtaining LiOH directly from brines with high LiCl concentrations using bipolar membrane electrodialysis by the analysis of Li(+) ion transport phenomena. For this purpose, Neosepta BP and Fumasep FBM bipolar membranes were characterized by linear sweep voltammetry, and the Li(+) transport number in cation-exchange membranes was determined. In addition, a laboratory-scale reactor was designed, constructed, and tested to develop experimental LiOH production tests. The selected LiCl concentration range, based on productive process concentrations for Salar de Atacama (Chile), was between 14 and 34 wt%. Concentration and current density effects on LiOH production, current efficiency, and specific electricity consumption were evaluated. The highest current efficiency obtained was 0.77 at initial concentrations of LiOH 0.5 wt% and LiCl 14 wt%. On the other hand, a concentrated LiOH solution (between 3.34 wt% and 4.35 wt%, with a solution purity between 96.0% and 95.4%, respectively) was obtained. The results of this work show the feasibility of LiOH production from concentrated brines by means of bipolar membrane electrodialysis, bringing the implementation of this technology closer to LiOH production on a larger scale. Moreover, being an electrochemical process, this could be driven by Solar PV, taking advantage of the high solar radiation conditions in the Atacama Desert in Chile.