Global news and projects
machine damage from operator errors,
thereby significantly reducing unplanned
maintenance works.
The technology will be installed
by mid-2019 with operator
training to be held simultaneously.
pr
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Breakthrough in refining lithium
Lithium Australia has announced a
breakthrough in its refining of lithium
chemicals achieved via an uncomplicated
and low-cost proprietary process. The
process facilitates the use of lithium
phosphate as direct input in the
production of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs)
— lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) batteries
in particular — or its further conversion
into high-purity lithium hydroxide.
Conventionally, production of LIBs
begins with the manufacture of a cathode
from high-purity lithium hydroxide or
lithium carbonate. However, Lithium
Australia recently demonstrated that
lithium phosphate derived from lithium
micas can also be used to create high-
performance batteries.
Although Lithium Australia originally
used crude lithium phosphate to produce
high-quality LIBs, its new refining process
— the subject of international patent
applications — reduces the impurities in
the crude phosphate to very low levels.
The new process, which may also be
applicable to the recovery of lithium from
other silicates (spodumene in particular),
has the potential to reduce the number
of steps necessary to generate cathode
powders.
LFP is considered the ‘safe’ LIB.
Although its energy density is lower than
that of some competing LIB chemistries,
certain remarkable properties that set it
apart include:
cts
• good thermal stability;
• reliable operation at low
temperatures;
• limited thermal runaway;
• high charge and discharge rates; and
• long battery life.
A Caterpillar LHD operating at Alkane Resources’ Tomingley gold mine in New South Wales, Australia.
Australia:
Alkane get autonomous solution
RCT has entered into a project with Alkane
Resources to commission autonomous
technology at its Tomingley Gold
Operations in New South Wales, Australia.
The work involves installing and
commissioning Control Master Guidance
Automation on two Caterpillar R2900G
load haul dump (LHD) machines to
operate at the company’s underground
[10] MINING MIRROR MAY 2019
gold operation at Tomingley, just south of
Dubbo.
RCT will also supply a telecabin,
including operator chair, LCD monitors,
and laser guard containment control with
the option to operate from the mine’s surface
via the ControlMaster Fibre Optic Control
Station (FOCS).
Guidance Automation removes operators
from machine cabs, which improves
safety, while the technology enables
faster tramming speeds and eliminates
VSPC, wholly owned by Lithium
Australia, is a fully integrated pilot
plant facility in Brisbane, Queensland,
that produces some of the world’s most
advanced cathode powders. While VSPC’s
principal focus is the production of LFP
powder, it has also created a range of other
cathode chemistries.
The unique properties of LFP LIBs make
them ideal for energy storage, to ensure the
reliability of renewable energy. Indeed, the
chemistry is now well established for that
application. By facilitating the use of lithium
micas as direct feed for the production
of cathode powders, Lithium Australia’s
technology could allow the supply of
domestically sourced raw materials to battery
manufacturers within many jurisdictions,
thereby mitigating the risk of supply chain
disruptions and bolstering the security of the
renewable energy industry overall.
www.miningmirror.co.za