In The News
Can the Salton Sea geothermal field prevent the coming lithium shortage?
University of California, Riverside scientists will join a first-of-its-kind effort to map out California’s so-called “Lithium Valley,” and learn whether it can meet America’s urgent demand for lithium in a sustainable, environmentally friendly way.
Where Is There More Lithium to Power Cars and Phones? Beneath a California Lake.
The U.S. race to secure a material known as ‘white gold’ turns to the Salton Sea, where energy companies hope to extract lithium from a geothermal reservoir. (WSJ subscription may be required to view article)
Jan 19: Critical Minerals and Materials Town Hall
A Lab wide town hall was held on January 19th, 2022 to prepare LBNL for multiple upcoming funding calls likely to cover topics specified in the DOE Critical Mineral and Materials Strategy and the FCAB Battery Blueprint. Topics included previous lab wide CMM efforts, new and emerging areas of interest in CMM, and sustaining an LBL vision for CMM.
Note: presentation viewable by LBL staff only. For questions, please email mwhittaker@lbl.gov.
March 8-9: National Energy Storage Summit
Exponential energy storage deployment is both expected and needed in the coming decades, enabling our nation’s just transition to a clean, affordable, and resilient energy future.
Registration Link
Agenda
Sizing Up the Challenges in Extracting Lithium from Geothermal Brine
Researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have recently published a comprehensive review of past and current technologies for extracting minerals from geothermal brine. (Article featuring LBLs Will Stringfellow)
Can Geothermal Energy Solve the Lithium Shortfall?
Lithium might seem like an unlikely object for the limelight, but those steeped in the mineral commodities market are not surprised. The need for lithium has grown exponentially in recent years. It plays a vital role in our high-tech world, particularly with rechargeable lithium batteries, which drive the growing market for portable electronic devices, electric tools, vehicles, and grid storage solutions.