ILiAD Technologies, LLC and Livent Corporation have signed an agreement wherein Livent acquired a minority stake in the parent company of ILiAD Technologies. The parent company is a subsidiary of EnergySource Minerals (ESM), developer of lithium projects in the Salton Sea Known Geothermal Resource Area in California. ILiAD Technologies aims to advance and commercialize the ILiAD (Integrated Lithium Adsorption Desorption) technology platform.
ILiAD employs an inventive direct lithium extraction (DLE) technology, developed through seven years of extensive research and pilot testing by ESM. The highly efficient and adaptable extraction technology is designed for the recovery of high-purity lithium chloride from lithium-rich brine resources worldwide. This includes brine from salars, produced water, geothermal brine operations, and other lithium sources.
As part of Livent’s investment in ILiAD Technologies, the company gains the right to license the ILiAD technology for potential deployment at its lithium brine resource in Argentina (Salar del Hombre Muerto). Livent is actively exploring opportunities for future production use across its portfolio.
The ILiAD solution complements Livent’s proprietary process technologies seamlessly, integrating into the company’s existing plant designs and flowsheet. As reported by PR Newswire, ILiAD presents the prospect of substantial enhancements in Livent’s energy efficiency, reduction in carbon footprint, and ongoing improvements in water usage. Commercial implementation of ILiAD at Livent is anticipated to commence as early as 2025.
“Livent is the world’s foremost practitioner and largest user of DLE-based production processes, and we are happy that they have recognised the advantages that ILiAD brings to the future of DLE. Our technology enhances the lithium extraction process with a fraction of the physical footprint of traditional operations, significantly less water use and lower carbon emissions than many other DLE solutions, and no consumption of reagents,” said Samuel Moore, Chief Executive Officer of ILiAD Technologies. “This partnership represents a major step in our mission to deploy ILiAD for environmentally responsible lithium production across the world,” Moore added.
“We are happy to partner with ILiAD Technologies as we continue to invest in processes and technologies which advance our strategy of producing high-quality lithium chemicals efficiently and sustainably,” said Paul Graves, Livent’s President and CEO. Graves added, “The ILiAD platform is a next generation, best-in-class technology that we expect will enhance and complement Livent’s existing proprietary processes, helping us build upon our decades-long record of successfully using DLE-based production processes at commercial scale”.
