1. Overview Lithium extractor

Business lines

• Lithium & Derivatives: Core growth driver – lithium carbonate and hydroxide for batteries.

• Iodine & Derivatives: Used in pharmaceuticals and industrial applications.

• Specialty Plant Nutrition & Potassium Products: Fertilizers and specialty nutrients.

Lithium production output

• Lithium Carbonate capacity: ~200,000 tpa metric tonnes (according to our customer’s representative )

• Lithium Hydroxide capacity: ~50, 000 metric tonnes (according to our customer;s representative) and plans targeting  ~100,000 metric tonnes and  ~240,000 metric tonnes for Lithium hydroxide and Lithium carbonate, respectively, as short-term objectives. 

Key competitive strengths 

Resource quality & cost advantage: Runs one of  the world’s highest-grade lithium brines, enabling low-cost production.

Strategic & market context 

The company is navigating regulatory and ESG complexities in Chile, with new partnership structures evolving (e.g., joint ventures). 

2. Problem

In the water process for Lithium production, yield recovery is a critical challenge. Real-time monitoring provides the necessary data to balance chemical consumption, specifically Soda Ash (Sodium Carbonate) to ensure optimal mineral precipitation and maximize the recovery of high-purity Lithium. Below are the two main problems they are facing:

2.1 Lack of precision in reagent dosing and yield optimisation

The current carbonation stage relies on the addition of Soda Ash and EDTA to manage Calcium and precipitate Lithium Carbonate. Without high-accuracy, real-time data for Carbonate  levels and Sulfate, the facility faces two risks:

• Reagent waste: Over-dosing EDTA and Soda Ash increases operational expenditure (OPEX).

• Reduced yield: Insufficient Carbonate levels prevent the full precipitation of Lithium, leaving valuable product in the Mother Liquor.

  2.2 Monitoring membrane integrity and impurity of blind spots

The Nanofiltration (NF) unit is critical for maintaining Sulfate levels below 100 ppm. However, there are currently two gaps in the monitoring strategy:

• Membrane breakthrough: Without continuous monitoring at the NF stage, a membrane failure could go undetected, leading to downstream Sulfate contamination.

• The Nitrate risk: There is currently a lack of awareness and monitoring regarding Nitrate presence. Unmonitored Nitrates can compromise the final product grade and interfere with the chemical balance of the brine circuit.

3. Solution

In Antofagasta, we have placed two sensors. One is after the carbonation in hot brine where we measure Carbonate and Sulfate. Another one is Nanofiltration after the pond (Mother Liquor). The two installations refer to the Production line 6 ( 1 out of 6) and to the Recovery line (NF permeate), respectively. 

The main problems concerning the two lines taken into consideration are the following:

• Precision carbonation: Use the >9,000 ppm Carbonate sensor data to automate Soda Ash injection, ensuring maximum Lithium precipitation without reagent over-saturation.

• EDTA efficiency: Correlate Calcium sequestration needs with real-time sensor feedback to optimize the use of EDTA, directly reducing chemical costs.

• NF integrity monitoring: Continuous sulphate monitoring at the Nanofiltration output (target <100 ppm) to provide an immediate early warning system for membrane fouling or breakthrough.

• Nitrate characterisation: Integration of Nitrate sensing capabilities to close the existing information gap, ensuring the plant can assess the impact of all ions on the final product purity.

3.1 What is the business case and the ROI ?

Our use-case  is water process optimization in Direct Lithium Extraction.

3.1.1 Production increase and Recovery Loss reduction

Precision monitoring directly correlates to higher product recovery and reduced downtime.

• Carbonation Optimization: A 0.1% yield increase in Hot Brine production (Line 6) generates €306,360 in additional annual revenue.

• Uptime Assurance: Real-time Sulfate monitoring in the NF plant prevents spikes at >2,000 ppm. By eliminating an estimated 12 days of unplanned downtime, the system recovers €933,240 in otherwise lost production.

3.1.2 Operational Cost (OPEX) Savings

Automated reagent dosing eliminates the "safety margin" over-dosing typical in manual processes.

• Reagent Efficiency: Precision Soda Ash injection and optimized EDTA sequestration for Calcium ($Ca^{2+}$) management result in a $2.5\%$ reduction in chemical consumption.

• Total Savings: Across the production and NF lines, this efficiency translates to €1,319,472 in annual chemical cost savings.

3.1.3 Resource Sustainability and Asset Protection

The solution reduces the environmental footprint and extends the life of high-value capital equipment.

• Water Recovery: Optimizing NF permeate and preventing scaling enables an additional $46,000\,m^3$ of high-quality water to be reused annually. This offsets expensive desalinated water costs by €154,560.

• Asset Longevity: By maintaining strict ionic balances, the solution can extend the lifespan of Nanofiltration membranes by up to 2x, significantly reducing long-term CAPEX

Table 1: Total cost savings 

• Gross Annual Savings/Gains: €2,559,072 p.a.

• Price Watergenics (2 Sensors): €75,600  p.a.

• Annual ROI: 29.5 x