Chemical definition of brine as water could help clear up Chile’s lithium controversy
As evidence grows that lithium mining damages water sources, reclassifying brine as water – rather than as mineral – could empower Indigenous communities to protect their rights and convince mining companies to act more responsibly
Researchers have proven that lithium brine is a kind of water and not a mineral, answering a fundamental question surrounding the controversy of the element’s extraction, particularly in Chile.
The team hopes the finding could help minimise the environmental and human impacts of lithium mining from brines. Lithium mining is expanding , both from brines and rocks, as more lithium-ion batteries are needed for electric vehicles and grid storage in efforts to mitigate climate change with clean energy. One estimate suggests demand for lithium carbonate in 2021 will reach 429,000 tonnes, more than double what it was in 2016. By 2030, demand could quadruple.
‘With the expansion of lithium supply to meet market demand, lithium mining has been rapidly expanding, and with that its environmental complications,’ says Amir Razmjou at the University of Technology Sydney, Australia who led the work. ‘It was obvious [that brine is water] but there was not a scientific, peer-reviewed document that proved it.’