How Optical and Atomic Spectroscopy is Enabling the New Lithium Economy

Description:
The world economy is presently fossil fuel based which poses significant future risks for our environment, climate and political stability. In response to these challenges, we are slowly transitioning to more renewable based energy sources. This requires cost effective, light weight and high performing energy storage now available with lithium batteries. The new lithium economy needs include: lithium mining, processing and purification, continued innovation in lithium battery technology, cost effective battery production, as well as effective, efficient recycling of value metals from spent lithium batteries.

Analytical spectroscopies are a critical enabling technology in the development, manufacturing and recycling processes associated with lithium batteries. Analyses needs encompass purity, control and monitoring at every step of the supply chain as well as reverse engineering, root cause analyses and interfacial studies in the innovation process. Key analytical technologies presently employed include:
• Atomic spectroscopy (elemental analysis)
• Vibrational spectroscopy and microscopy (molecular speciation)
• SEM-EDX imaging, XPS

The proposed symposia will provide an overview of the economic drivers and present mining practices of lithium, current design features and performance characteristics of lithium batteries, recycling practices of spent lithium batteries, characterizing and understanding lithium battery interfaces and failure modes and also characterization of the graphite rich black mass of the recycling stream.

Speaker: peter larkin - Solvay/Technology Solutions
Peter Larkin received his Ph.D from the University of Pittsburgh in 1990 from Sanford Asher employing resonance Raman and vibrational circular dichroism to study heme proteins. Since that time, he has worked in analytical departments both in the specialty chemical and pharmaceutical industries using vibrational spectroscopic techniques to solve industrial problems.

Peter presently leads the spectroscopy, thermal analyses and chromatography groups at Solvay R&I in Stamford CT and continues to focus his efforts on vibrational spectroscopy. He has published and presented extensively and his book, entitled IR and Raman Spectroscopy: Principles and Spectral Interpretation, second edition (Elsevier) was published in November 2017.

Peter is presently the president-elect of SAS and serves on the board of managers (2019-present) of the Coblentz Society.