Lithium and its uses
Lithium has played a key role in the development of high-performance lithium-ion batteries. Today, it is associated with lithium-ion batteries, which are essential in many fields such as mobility, industry, and energy storage, with the goal of creating “a wireless society free from fossil fuels.” The role of lithium is also crucial for the energy transition, but this metal is used in other applications that we might not suspect.
The most significant properties of lithium
Lithium was discovered in the form of salts in 1817 by Swedish chemist Johann August Arfvedson during the analysis of silicate rocks (petalite). It was later isolated by William Thomas Brande and Humphry Davy.
Lithium is the first alkali metal in the periodic table, the lightest solid metal, and has the lowest molar mass as well as the lowest density, with a very low specific mass. Lithium never occurs naturally in its metallic form; it is found in dissolved form (as salts, oxides, or in minerals).
Lithium has many advantages:
- A high electrochemical reactivity,
- A high specific heat, the highest of all solids,
- High thermal conductivity,
- A low coefficient of thermal expansion.
Lithium thus has a high electrochemical potential, which explains its use in the anode of batteries.
The evolution of lithium use
Before the boom of lithium batteries, lithium’s uses were diverse.
In 2008, among its global uses, excluding batteries, the majority was found in glass and ceramics, followed by lithium-based lubricating greases, air treatment and conditioning, the production of pharmaceuticals and fine chemicals, aluminum metallurgy, as well as other uses such as cement production, pyrotechnics, and water treatment.
Except for specialty applications, impurities are tolerated, so the purity level of lithium for the uses mentioned is relatively low.
Lithium has long been used in healthcare; it has been prescribed as a standard treatment for people with bipolar disorder for about fifty years. Indeed, lithium has the property of being a mood stabilizer, though its mechanisms of action in the brain remain unknown.
Lithium uses today
Although lithium is still used in the glass and ceramics industry, it is now predominantly used in the battery sector, in line with the needs for clean and renewable energy, thus surpassing all other uses.
For this high-tech industry, the purity level of lithium is crucial to ensure the performance and safety of the batteries. This technology, indispensable to our way of life, will play a determining role in the energy transition and the development of a low carbon dioxide emission model, thanks to the use of batteries for electric vehicles and energy storage.
Our daily lives are characterized by a constant connection and a massive need for wireless energy, due to the continuous improvement of possibilities and techniques. Apart from mobility and energy storage, lithium-ion batteries are used in the market for new devices and tools, particularly connected objects (IoT), which have many applications. Therefore, there are few fields, especially the most innovative, that will not need lithium-ion batteries.
All these technologies require adapted lithium batteries that meet their needs. At Batteries Prod, we manufacture custom lithium-ion batteries, so we are capable of adapting to your needs across all sectors.