Recovery of Acid and Base from Sodium Sulfate Containing Lithium Carbonate Using Bipolar Membrane Electrodialysis
Lithium carbonate is an important chemical raw material that is widely used in many contexts. The preparation of lithium carbonate by acid roasting is limited due to the large amounts of low-value sodium sulfate waste salts that result. In this research, bipolar membrane electrodialysis (BMED) techn...
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MDPI AG
2021-02-01
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| Series: | Membranes |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/11/2/152 |
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| author | Wenjie Gao Qinxiang Fang Haiyang Yan Xinlai Wei Ke Wu |
| author_facet | Wenjie Gao Qinxiang Fang Haiyang Yan Xinlai Wei Ke Wu |
| author_sort | Wenjie Gao |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Lithium carbonate is an important chemical raw material that is widely used in many contexts. The preparation of lithium carbonate by acid roasting is limited due to the large amounts of low-value sodium sulfate waste salts that result. In this research, bipolar membrane electrodialysis (BMED) technology was developed to treat waste sodium sulfate containing lithium carbonate for conversion of low-value sodium sulfate into high-value sulfuric acid and sodium hydroxide. Both can be used as raw materials in upstream processes. In order to verify the feasibility of the method, the effects of the feed salt concentration, current density, flow rate, and volume ratio on the desalination performance were determined. The conversion rate of sodium sulfate was close to 100%. The energy consumption obtained under the best experimental conditions was 1.4 kWh·kg<sup>−1</sup>. The purity of the obtained sulfuric acid and sodium hydroxide products reached 98.32% and 98.23%, respectively. Calculated under the best process conditions, the total process cost of BMED was estimated to be USD 0.705 kg<sup>−1</sup> Na<sub>2</sub>SO<sub>4</sub>, which is considered low and provides an indication of the potential economic and environmental benefits of using applying this technology. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T00:38:27Z |
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| id | doaj.art-663cb355bc7a42a4a6fc83969dba4de5 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-0375 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T00:38:27Z |
| publishDate | 2021-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Membranes |
| spelling | doaj.art-663cb355bc7a42a4a6fc83969dba4de52023-12-11T17:58:25ZengMDPI AGMembranes2077-03752021-02-0111215210.3390/membranes11020152Recovery of Acid and Base from Sodium Sulfate Containing Lithium Carbonate Using Bipolar Membrane ElectrodialysisWenjie Gao0Qinxiang Fang1Haiyang Yan2Xinlai Wei3Ke Wu4Collaborative Innovation Center for Environmental Pollution Precaution and Ecological Rehabilitation of Anhui, School of Biology, Food and Environment Engineering, Hefei University, Hefei 230601, ChinaCollaborative Innovation Center for Environmental Pollution Precaution and Ecological Rehabilitation of Anhui, School of Biology, Food and Environment Engineering, Hefei University, Hefei 230601, ChinaCAS Key Laboratory of Soft Matter Chemistry, Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemistry for Energy Materials, School of Chemistry and Material Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, ChinaCollaborative Innovation Center for Environmental Pollution Precaution and Ecological Rehabilitation of Anhui, School of Biology, Food and Environment Engineering, Hefei University, Hefei 230601, ChinaCollaborative Innovation Center for Environmental Pollution Precaution and Ecological Rehabilitation of Anhui, School of Biology, Food and Environment Engineering, Hefei University, Hefei 230601, ChinaLithium carbonate is an important chemical raw material that is widely used in many contexts. The preparation of lithium carbonate by acid roasting is limited due to the large amounts of low-value sodium sulfate waste salts that result. In this research, bipolar membrane electrodialysis (BMED) technology was developed to treat waste sodium sulfate containing lithium carbonate for conversion of low-value sodium sulfate into high-value sulfuric acid and sodium hydroxide. Both can be used as raw materials in upstream processes. In order to verify the feasibility of the method, the effects of the feed salt concentration, current density, flow rate, and volume ratio on the desalination performance were determined. The conversion rate of sodium sulfate was close to 100%. The energy consumption obtained under the best experimental conditions was 1.4 kWh·kg<sup>−1</sup>. The purity of the obtained sulfuric acid and sodium hydroxide products reached 98.32% and 98.23%, respectively. Calculated under the best process conditions, the total process cost of BMED was estimated to be USD 0.705 kg<sup>−1</sup> Na<sub>2</sub>SO<sub>4</sub>, which is considered low and provides an indication of the potential economic and environmental benefits of using applying this technology.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/11/2/152lithium carbonateBMEDclean productioncurrent efficiencyrecycling |
| spellingShingle | Wenjie Gao Qinxiang Fang Haiyang Yan Xinlai Wei Ke Wu Recovery of Acid and Base from Sodium Sulfate Containing Lithium Carbonate Using Bipolar Membrane Electrodialysis Membranes lithium carbonate BMED clean production current efficiency recycling |
| title | Recovery of Acid and Base from Sodium Sulfate Containing Lithium Carbonate Using Bipolar Membrane Electrodialysis |
| title_full | Recovery of Acid and Base from Sodium Sulfate Containing Lithium Carbonate Using Bipolar Membrane Electrodialysis |
| title_fullStr | Recovery of Acid and Base from Sodium Sulfate Containing Lithium Carbonate Using Bipolar Membrane Electrodialysis |
| title_full_unstemmed | Recovery of Acid and Base from Sodium Sulfate Containing Lithium Carbonate Using Bipolar Membrane Electrodialysis |
| title_short | Recovery of Acid and Base from Sodium Sulfate Containing Lithium Carbonate Using Bipolar Membrane Electrodialysis |
| title_sort | recovery of acid and base from sodium sulfate containing lithium carbonate using bipolar membrane electrodialysis |
| topic | lithium carbonate BMED clean production current efficiency recycling |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0375/11/2/152 |
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