Simultaneous Lithium Extraction and Thin-Film Deposition of Lithium Metal for Low-Cost, High-Energy Anodes from Brine Resources

Brine resources in the United States are not amenable to conventional approaches for lithium extraction and the process for fabricating lithium metal from these extracted materials has severe limitations which lead to expensive coatings and subpar battery performance. The proposed project will investigate the use of a novel approach to lithium extraction from brine resources which directly results in the fabrication of cell-ready thin-film lithium metal electrodes. This process, which we refer to as reductive lithium extraction (RLE), solves two problems currently plaguing the lithium and battery industry, namely (1) lithium extraction from brine resources and (2) low-cost thin-film lithium metal fabrication. The RLE process uses an applied voltage to perform the lithium extraction which allows for the combination of lithium extraction and thin-film lithium metal fabrication to a single step. This combined process will substantially simplify the lithium supply chain and unlock domestic sources of lithium which are critical to our electrification and climate goals. The proposed project will investigate the use of brine- based resources in the RLE process and evaluate the resulting thin-films of lithium metal as electrodes in lithium-ion batteries. The goal of this fast-track proposal is to create a coating unit capable of operating at the site of cell manufacturing to reduce the cost and improve the quality of lithium metal electrodes used in battery production. Phase I of this program will evaluate the performance of the RLE system using synthetic brine resources. This evaluation will include a characterization of the RLE lithium extraction efficiency and the battery performance of the resulting lithium metal electrode. In Phase II, the process will be optimized for commercial application. This optimization will include an increase of the lithium extraction and thin-film deposition speed to levels attractive to our customers in a roll-to-roll pilot coating unit. Additionally, the total cost of lithium metal production will be characterized in this system and compared to what is available commercially. At the completion of this project, the performance of a pilot coating unit will inform a complete techno-economic analysis of the commercial potential of the RLE process. Success in this project will result in a process that enables lithium metal extraction from domestic raw materials at a lower cost and with a greater energy efficiency than the approaches used today. Notably, this process enables the full lithium supply chain for a lithium metal anode to be wholly captured in the United States. The efficiency of this process leap frogs existing operations and initial cost estimates predict that this will result in a 50-90% decrease in the cost of lithium metal thin-films which are critical for next-generation high-energy batteries. Successful deployment of this process commercially will result in lower material costs for battery manufacturers which is anticipated to result in lower cost batteries for consumers. A reduction in the price of high-energy batteries will have a direct impact on the cost of electric vehicles which is critical to achieve the level of widespread adoption required by the United States’ climate goals. A joint development agreement with a commercial manufacturer will carry this project to full commercialization.