The proposed project would produce 20,900 tonnes per year of battery-quality lithium carbonate from tail-brine leaving LANXESS bromine extraction operations at three facilities in the Smackover project area.
Report context
The Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) for the LANXESS Smackover Project describes Standard Lithium's proposed flowsheet as of the report date. Feed for the project is tail-brine exiting LANXESS bromine extraction operations at three sites designated South, Central, and West. The proposed design covers primary lithium chloride extraction at each facility followed by centralized conversion to lithium carbonate.
Processing route
Overall configuration
The proposed processing route is based on treating tail-brine from three separate LANXESS bromine extraction operations: South, Central, and West. Each facility is designed to host its own primary lithium chloride (LiCl) extraction plant. The primary plants would produce purified and concentrated lithium chloride solutions.
Primary lithium chloride extraction
Each of the three primary extraction plants is shown in the process block flow diagram using a lithium adsorbent step. Tail-brine from the LANXESS operations enters the extraction plant, and the adsorbent circuit produces a lithium chloride solution. The resulting barren-brine is directed to disposal. A recycle stream is also indicated in the block flow diagram, though no additional recycle details are provided in the report text.
Central lithium carbonate plant
The purified and concentrated lithium chloride solutions from the South, West, and Central primary plants are conveyed via pipelines to a single location, identified in the block flow diagram as the Central Plant. The Central Plant is designed to convert the combined lithium chloride solution to the final product: lithium carbonate (Li2CO3).
Product and recovery
The proposed design targets total lithium carbonate production of 20,900 tonnes per year. Overall lithium recovery to the final product is stated at about 90 percent.
Key reported parameters
| Parameter | Value | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Feed source | Tail-brine from LANXESS bromine extraction | Proposed design (South, Central, West operations) |
| Number of primary LiCl extraction plants | 3 | Proposed design |
| Final product | Battery-quality lithium carbonate (Li2CO3) | Proposed design |
| Total lithium carbonate production | 20,900 tonnes/y | Proposed design |
| Lithium recovery to final product | About 90% | Proposed design |
| Primary extraction technology | Lithium adsorbent | Proposed design |
| Intermediate product | Purified and concentrated LiCl solution | Proposed design |
| Intermediate transfer | Pipelines to Central Plant | Proposed design |
| Barren-brine disposition | Disposal | Proposed design |
Project website: https://www.standardlithium.com/technology/demonstration-plant/
Technical qualifications
The report text presents the recovery methods at a block-flow level and does not provide detailed flowsheet descriptions for the adsorbent circuits, purification steps, or the central lithium carbonate conversion plant. No historical operating data or testwork results are reported in the recovery methods section. The production figure of 20,900 tonnes/y and the recovery estimate of about 90% are stated as project objectives or design parameters rather than as demonstrated performance. Quantitative composition of the feed brine, reagent consumptions, energy use, and equipment specifications are not provided in this section.
Source
Preliminary Economic Assessment of LANXESS Smackover Project, Section 17 Recovery Methods.
