At the SOLIDS 2024 trade fair, Secopta will introduce its new MineralLIBS analyzer for automatic inline material analyses. The new system has been specifically adapted to the conditions prevailing in lithium extraction and processing operations as well as the recycling of batteries for e-mobility and electricity storage.

Secopta MineralLIBS (Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy) measures the elemental composition of bulk material on conveyor belts in a non-contact, real-time process. While, in the past, this kind of analysis was often performed only discontinuously and on the basis of random samples, the new measuring system enables the continuous monitoring of the material in real time. MineralLIBS is suitable for any type of minerals processing.

Secopta now supplies the system also with a special setup adapted to primary lithium extraction processes and the analysis of black mass. In lithium extraction processes, the system can be used to scan spodumene ores – an important raw material for lithium production. Based on the information provided by the system, it is possible to determine both the lithium content and the contents of the other elements in the ore. Knowing these data makes it possible to optimize the use of chemicals in the subsequent treatment process. This shortens the processing times in the reactors, minimizes the use of chemicals, reduces energy consumption and minimizes waste. Exemplary calculations have shown that with a typical input flow rate of about 30 t/h several hundred thousand euros per year can be saved in the pre-calcinate leaching steps.

In battery recycling for e-mobility and electricity storage, MineralLIBS can be used for the analysis of black mass, on the one hand, for quality control during the recycling process from the battery to the black mass and, on the other hand, during the upstream treatment processes to obtain lithium from the black mass.

The LIBS-based inline measuring systems from Secopta measure the chemical composition of the material on conveyor belts. This ensures that processes can be optimally controlled at all times. The measurement of the chemical composition is based on an optical procedure: Short laser impulses generate a plasma, the element-specific radiation of which is measured by a spectrometer. The measuring system adjusts itself automatically to varying charge heights of the material on the conveyor belt. Self-optimizing algorithms translate the spectral information in real time into qualitative or quantitative data about the elemental composition of the material.

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