Trend Technology 2: lithium moves from evaporation ponds to engineered direct extraction

Summary

Direct lithium extraction is the second emerging technology in the report, replacing slow evaporation ponds with engineered processing of brine. In Chile's Atacama Desert, brine is spread across salt flats for months while the sun concentrates the lithium, a process that can take up to two years and uses large amounts of water. Direct extraction instead treats the liquid in engineered systems, recovering lithium within hours and sending the depleted water back underground. Methods include sorbents that selectively attract lithium ions, membrane filtration and solvent extraction, often combined to suit each source. Recovery can reach 80–95% compared with roughly half for evaporation, and output can be close to battery-grade. Because it also works with geothermal fluids and oilfield wastewater, the technology is changing the geography of lithium supply rather than only its speed.