Eramet - Open Innovation Challenge

Who is Eramet?

Eramet, French international mining and metallurgical company is one of the world’s leading producers of:

Manganese and nickel, used to improve the properties of steels, and mineral sands (titanium dioxide and zircon),
Parts and semi-finished products in alloys and high-performance special steels used by industries such as aerospace, power generation, and tooling.

Eramet is also developing activities with strong growth potential, such as lithium extraction and recycling, called to play a key role in the energy transition and the mobility of the future.
The Group employs around 12,600 people in 20 countries.

Eramet Ideas is the innovation centre of Eramet. Eramet Ideas' ambition is to position itself as the world-renowned European centre of excellence in extractive metallurgy and recycling. To this end, Eramet Ideas is leveraging the quality of its teams and tools: electronic imaging, digital simulation and pilot installations reproducing Group technologies in pyrometallurgy, hydrometallurgy and mineral processing.
More information www.eramet.com

What is the context of the challenge?

Eramet is building a project in the Northern Argentina to extract lithium from a salar at 3800 meters above sea level. Eramet has developed a direct extraction process based on the development of an active material able to capture lithium from the brine. This process is divided into ~10 steps. On two of these steps (forced evaporation and boron extraction) silica management is essential in order to be able to operate the process continuously. The aim of this challenge is to find a solution to manage silica in an efficient way.

More information on the lithium project is available at the following address:
www.eramet.com/en/lithium

What is the prize?

15K€ in cash + 35K€ for the development of the solution at lab scale
+ 2 visits of Eramet European plants + one-year admission fees to the scientific PROMETIA association.

What are the deadlines of the challenge?

Submission of the proposal: from April 3rd to June 5th 2019, 17:00 CET
Pitching of the best 3 ideas: from July 3rd to August 31st 2019
Winner announcement: by September 10th 2019

How do I submit a proposal?

The participant needs to register at this platform. There, he will be able to download a Word file to be filled in. The proposal should then be uploaded on the website, with the possibility to upload also two supporting documents.

What are the evaluation criteria?

The proposal submitted by the Participant will be evaluated following different criteria gathered in three (3) categories mentioned below:
General

Understanding of the proposal
Description of the idea
Strengths and resources of the Organization submitting the proposal

Innovation

Innovativeness of the solution
TRL situation
Environment, safety and economic aspects

Implementation of the solution

Robustness of the implementation methodology
Technical feasibility
IP Issues

Who will evaluate my proposal?

The evaluation team is composed of minimum 4 persons: 2 experts from Eramet and 2 experts from the Eramet Innovation Council coming from non-European research centres.

I don’t have time to finish my proposal, is it possible to send it after the deadline?

No, the participant must respect the deadline to validate its proposal: June 5th 2019, 17:00 CET

Is it possible to modify my proposal after the deadline?

No change of the proposal will be possible after the deadline.

Did I have to answer to all questions for my application to be accepted?

It is recommended to answer all the parts indicated in the template in order to maximize the score of the submitted proposal.

Can the same participant submit several projects?

Yes, the same participant can submit 3 projects maximum.

How can I make sure that my application has been received?

Upload your final document on your account on the challenge website and confirm your participation by clicking on the "submit your participation" button. Once your proposal submitted, you will see a “green check” next to the name of your contribution

Do I need to wait until the deadline to submit my project idea?

We strongly recommend you to submit your idea as soon as possible. However, we inform you that you can modify/update your project if necessary until June 5th 2019. Don’t wait until the last minute, if you need help.

Who should I send technical questions to? What about administrative questions?

For technical or administrative questions, participants may address questions by writing an e-mail to:
FR-EFT-challengeeramet@eramet.com

Which language should the entry submission be written in?

All entry submissions must be written in English or in French.

Where does the silicon present in the solution come from?

The silicon present in the solution comes from the natural brine.

What are the main steps before forced evaporation?

The main steps before forced evaporation are:

Direct extraction of lithium by a proprietary active solid able to selectively extract lithium and release it in a pre-concentrated purified solution.
Membrane separation techniques to do a first purification and concentration of the solution.

Is it possible to remove silicon from the solution earlier in the process?

Of course, it could be possible. Nevertheless, remove the silicon content of the solution before these steps presents the following drawbacks:

Flowrate in the process is bigger
Silicon content is lower
Silicon concentration target has to be also lower because the Si concentration has to be less than 10 mg/L before solvent extraction (35g/L Li solution)

What is the expected composition range of the solution feeding the forced evaporation step?

The expected composition range of the solution feeding the forced evaporation step is the following:

Li	g/L	3.5 - 6
Na	g/L	2 - 9
K	g/L	0.1 - 0.33
Ca	g/L	0.007 - 0.040
Mg	g/L	0.011 - 0.034
B	g/L	0.23 - 0.51
SO4	g/L	0.018 - 0.076
Cl	g/L	29 - 45
Si	g/L	0.03 - 0.041
Density	kg/m3	~1.030

Are there other elements present in the solution?

The main components present in the solution are lithium chloride, sodium chloride and boric acid. Other elements are present in very small quantities thanks to direct extraction and membrane separation technics (see previous question).

What is the maximum Si content authorized before the step of forced evaporation and boron solvent extraction?

The silicon content before solvent extraction has to be less than 10 mg/L to avoid cruds formation. This corresponds to less than 1 mg/L before forced evaporation.

What is the speciation of silicon in the solution before the forced evaporation step?

Both Elemental analysis by ICP and molybdenum blue colorimetric technique conclude that more than 95 % of Si is present as “monomeric silica” (silicate/silicic acid). No colloidal silica was detected by these techniques.

What are the pH and the temperature of the solution?

The pH of the solution is 5 and the temperature around 25-30°C.

What is the material of the boiler?

The material of the boiler will be chosen by equipment provider. It should be titanium.

Which solvent is used during the boron solvent extraction step?

It is a heavy alcohol extractant diluted in an aliphatic diluent.

Are there other elements present in the solution?

The main components present in the solution are lithium chloride, sodium chloride and boric acid. Other elements are present in very small quantities thanks to direct extraction and membrane separation techniques.