Study on lithium extraction from natural brine without additional energy consumption by photocatalytic technology

Extracting lithium from natural brine is the most efficient means to cater to the growing demand for lithium. The direct extraction of lithium from natural brine is a highly challenging process owing to the harsh natural conditions of most salt lakes. The high altitude, arid climate, and lack of energy greatly restrict the industrialization of lithium extraction from salt lakes. Therefore, lithium adsorption technology is combined with photocatalytic technology to investigate the natural brine lithium extraction method without additional energy consumption. In particular, we report an adsorbent that utilizes light for lithium adsorption in natural brine. Its unique lithium adsorption mechanism provides excellent lithium adsorption capacity and lithium selectivity in untreated natural brines, the adsorption capacity reached 32.17 mg/g for 24 h. Our findings provide a more economical and environmentally friendly strategy for the direct extraction of lithium directly from natural brines.