American Lithium‘s (TSXV: LI; NASDAQ: AMLI) shares closed 10.9% higher on Wednesday following results of optimization work to improve the chemical process used to produce lithium carbonate at its TLC project in Nevada.
The ongoing work is focused on leaching conditions and lithium recovery from the TLC claystones, minimizing lithium losses during neutralization and magnesium sulphate crystallization, and on increasing the product’s purity in the precipitation stage.
According to American Lithium, its test work has been ongoing on the TLC flowsheet since the project’s preliminary economic assessment was published earlier this year.
The study forecast an initial capital cost of US$819 million for the truck and shovel open-pit operation. It would initially produce 24,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) annually before doubling to 48,000 tonnes in year seven. After 20 years the mine would process a stockpile of ore with more than 1,000 parts per million (ppm) lithium for another two decades.
The current testing is being done at TECMMINE facilities in Lima, Peru, with technical input on test conditions from DRA Pacific.
The leach conditions have been optimized using sulfuric acid leaching at 50°C achieving 95% lithium extraction in a two-hour leach cycle with 495 kg/t acid consumption. This, the company said, lowers the leaching temperature conditions from 90°C used in the PEA, with comparable extraction.
These leach parameters resulted in lower acid consumption, which translates into lower limestone consumption during the pre-neutralization phase and a reduction in lime requirements during the neutralization stage, it added.
Magnesium sulphate crystallization was improved resulting in 68% total magnesium recovery and minimizing lithium losses to 1.1% during this impurity removal phase.
The final lithium recovery through the entire hydrometallurgical process achieved in this single test is 84.8% with the highest lithium carbonate purity achieved to date from TLC claystone processing test work.
A final calculated purity of 99.59% lithium carbonate equivalent was attained through the new optimized leach process.
“The flowsheet continues to be refined with improvements and results that should improve on the already robust US$3.28 billion NPV for the project highlighted in the company’s maiden PEA,” Simon Clarke, CEO of American Lithium, commented.
“We are able to make strong, rapid progress utilizing the expertise of TECMMINE in Peru, ANSTO in Australia and DRA Global, our lead engineers to drive TLC through the prefeasibility process.”
The company’s shares ended the day at $2.13 apiece, giving it $412-million market capitalization.
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