Characterizing the Geothermal Lithium Resource at the Salton Sea
Open accessAbstract
The energy transition towards a more sustainable and renewable future is a pivotal global endeavor. Central to this shift for the United States is the critical role of domestically sourced lithium, a key mineral in the production of high-performance batteries essential for electric vehicles and renewable energy storage systems. This has driven the United States to invest heavily in a domestic supply chain for batterygrade lithium to enhance energy security, reduce supply chain vulnerabilities, and foster economic growth by tapping into local resources. A notable example is the Biden Administration’s “American Battery Materials Initiative,” which was included in the $2.8-billion Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (The White House, 2022).
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Processing wastewater may include heavy metals, other by-product minerals, silica, and solid wastes that require disposal at a materials recovery facility, landfill, or hazardous waste site.
“Processing wastewater may include heavy metals, other by-product minerals, silica, and solid wastes that require disposal at a materials recovery facility, landfill, or hazardous waste site”
From Lithium and water: Hydrosocial impacts across the life cycle of energy storage (2024) · cites this paper as Dobson et al., 2023
Improper reinjection of spent brines may lead to the dilution of lithium-rich resources.
“improper reinjection of spent brines may lead to the dilution of lithium-rich resources”
From Lithium and water: Hydrosocial impacts across the life cycle of energy storage (2024) · cites this paper as Dobson et al., 2023
Cites
Environmental impact of direct lithium extraction from brines
Vera, M. L., Torres, W. R., Galli, C. I., Chagnes, A., & Flexer, V. (2023) · Nature Reviews Earth & Environment · doi:10.1038/s43017-022-00387-5 · Cited by 766 · see citing works
Kelly, J. C., Wang, M., Dai, Q., & Winjobi, O. (2021) · Resources, Conservation and Recycling · doi:10.1016/j.resconrec.2021.105762 · Cited by 288 · see citing works
The role of climate in the accumulation of lithium-rich brine in the central Andes
Godfrey, L. V., Chan, L.-H., Alonso, R. N., Lowenstein, T. K., McDonough, W. F., Houston, J., Li, J., Bobst, A., & Jordan, T. E. (2013) · Applied Geochemistry · doi:10.1016/j.apgeochem.2013.09.002 · Cited by 133 · see citing works
Munk, L. A., Boutt, D. F., Hynek, S. A., & Moran, B. J. (2018) · Chemical Geology · doi:10.1016/j.chemgeo.2018.05.013 · Cited by 100 · see citing works
Techno-Economic Analysis of Lithium Extraction from Geothermal Brines
Warren, I. (2021) · doi:10.2172/1782801 · Cited by 81 · see citing works
Moran, B. J., Boutt, D. F., McKnight, S. V., Jenckes, J., Munk, L. A., Corkran, D., & Kirshen, A. (2022) · Earth's Future · doi:10.1029/2021ef002555 · Cited by 50 · see citing works
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Lithium and water: Hydrosocial impacts across the life cycle of energy storage
Blair, J. J. A., Vineyard, N., Mulvaney, D., Cantor, A., Sharbat, A., Berry, K., Bartholomew, E., & Ornelas, A. F. (2024) · WIREs Water · doi:10.1002/wat2.1748 · Cited by 38 · see citing works
“Even though there are considerable waste streams due to scaling and filter cake material, geothermal developers describe this form of energy as a renewable resource because once the brine is cooled, much of it is reinjected into the same subterranean deposit (Dobson et al., 2023).”
Busse, M. M., McKibben, M. A., Stringfellow, W., Dobson, P., & Stokes-Draut, J. R. (2024) · Environmental Research Letters · doi:10.1088/1748-9326/ad6a73 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
Self-citation
- Authors
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), B., Dobson, P., USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), R. P. O. G. T. O., Araya, N., Brounce, M., Busse, M., Camarillo, M., English, L., Humphreys, J., Kalderon-Asael, B., McKibben, M., Millstein, D., Nakata, N., O'Sullivan, J., Planavsky, N., Popineau, J., Renaud, T., Riffault, J., Slattery, M., Sonnenthal, E., Spycher, N., Stokes-Draut, J., Stringfellow, W., & White, M.
- Affiliations
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (US)
- University of California, Riverside (US)
- University of the Pacific (US)
- University of Auckland (New Zealand)
- University of Auckland (NZ)
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology (US)
- ORCID
- Published
- 2023-11-22
- OpenAlex
- W4389153252
- Cited by
- 29
- References
- 6
- Citations by year
- 2026: 7 · 2025: 14 · 2024: 8
- Type
- report
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- escholarship.org
- Licence
- cc-by
- Locations
- eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- OSTI OAI (U.S. Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Renewable Power Office. Geothermal Technologies Office
- DOE (AC02-05CH11231)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Mechanical Engineering › Extraction and Separation Processes
- Physical Sciences › Energy › Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment › Geothermal Energy Systems and Applications
- Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Geochemistry and Petrology › Geochemistry and Elemental Analysis
- Keywords
- Salton Sea, battery-grade lithium, critical mineral supply chains, lithium mining, electric vehicle batteries, renewable energy storage, energy security
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