A trove of lithium-rich brine exists underground in Bolivia.
A trove of lithium-rich brine exists underground in Bolivia. Researchers conducted the first comprehensive chemical analysis of wastewater associated with mining the resource.
The world’s largest known lithium deposit exists within a vast salt pan called the Salar de Uyuni, which stretches for thousands of square miles atop a high, dry Andean plateau in Bolivia. For most of the year, salt crystals encrust the terrain, white as confectioner’s sugar. During the wet season, pooling rainwater mirrors surrounding mountains and sky.
“The Salar is a magical place for travelers from all over the world who come to see the colors, the reflections, in this endless white landscape,” said Avner Vengosh, Nicholas Chair of Environmental Quality at the Duke University Nicholas School of the Environment.
What most tourists don’t see is the vast reserve of lithium dissolved in highly saline, or salty, brine just below their shoes. Contained within sediments and salts that descend a few feet to more than 160 feet below the surface, this untapped trove could potentially be a key resource for the renewable energy sector.
Read more at Duke University
Image: The Salar de Uyuni stretches 2.5 million acres across a high plateau in Bolivia. (Credit: Image courtesy of Avner Vengosh/Duke University)
