Journal
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Volume 52, Issue 5, Pages 2827-2834Publisher
AMER CHEMICAL SOC
DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.7b06092
Keywords
-
Categories
Funding
- National Natural Science Foundation of China [71403142, 71774100, 71690241]
- Young Elite Scientists Sponsorship Program by CAST [YESS20160140]
- State Key Laboratory of Automotive Safety and Energy [ZZ2016-024]
- China Automotive Energy Research Center of Tsinghua University (CAERC)
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Lithium has been widely recognized as an essential metal for next-generation clean technologies. With the aim of identifying opportunities for improving lithium resource efficiency and security, this study establishes a long-term trade-linked material flow analysis framework to analyze lithium flow throughout the technological life cycle and across national boundaries during the 1994-2015 period. The results indicate that with broader purposes identified, global lithium production and consumption experienced rapid growth over the past decades. A widely distributed, actively functioning lithium trade network has been established, with the United States, China, the European Union, Chile, and Australia playing essential roles. Global lithium in-use stock, which is mainly embodied in ceramics and glass, reached 29 kilotons in 2015. The lithium stock contained in battery-related applications, together with the huge potential production of stock in future decades, represents a major opportunity for secondary lithium recovery. In the context of intensive international trade, international cooperation on lithium waste management is extremely important. It is also suggested that there is a high risk of lithium shortage for countries with strong dependence on lithium import. The establishment of domestic lithium reserves may be an option for these countries.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available