E3S Web of Conferences 280, 08016 (2021) https://doi.org/10.

1051/e3sconf/202128008016
ICSF 2021

Application of membrane processes in mining and mineral

processing
Marinela Panayotova1,* and Vladko Panayotov1,2
1University of Mining and Geology, 1700 Sofia, Bulgaria
2BAS - Technical Sciences, 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria

Abstract. Sustainable mining and mineral processing is of paramount importance for producing metals
needed for our society development. Membrane processes are able to contribute to the comprehensive
extraction of metals from mined ores, while at the same time decrease the amounts of used water and reagents
and ensure discharge to the environment of wastewater meeting the legislation requirements. Membrane-
based technologies are still underused in metals obtaining although their development and price have made
their application affordable. The paper presents in brief membrane processes and displays examples of their
application in various areas of mining and mineral processing, such as coping with acid mine drainage and
mine influenced water, recovery of metals, reagents and water in hydrometallurgy, recovery of lithium from
brines, and treatment of wastewater. Emphasis is placed on pressure driven membrane processes, as well as
on the very recent studies in the area. Advantages of membrane processes application in mining and mineral
processing are pointed out as well as constrains to be overcome.

1 Introduction wastewater into the environment. Since the flotation

efficiency can be affected by the water quality, different
The sustainable development of our society and our approached have been and are being developed to cope
normal life needs metals - ferrous, nonferrous and minor. with the problem. Among them membrane technologies
For the present, all metals can be ensured in required are being studied to remove metal ions and improve the
amounts only by the ''chain" mining - extractive quality of water used in flotation [7].
metallurgy (mineral processing, hydrometallurgy, Nowadays the shortage of many metals necessary for
pyrometallurgy and electrometallurgy). the modern economies, in combination with the
Ores extraction by mining and metals extraction by increasing demand and the need to use low-grade ores,
mineral processing and/or hydrometallurgy are related requires more efficient technologies for metals extraction.
with generation and /or use of different aqueous streams. Hydrometallurgy plays a key role in processing and
When sulphide minerals, such as pyrite are disturbed by recovery of metals from challenging raw materials.
mining activities and exposed to oxygen and water Traditionally hydrometallurgical flowsheet includes i)
chemical reactions take place - finally leading to ores leaching, ii) purification of the pregnant leach
formation of acidic water containing sulphates and ions of solution (PLS) by solvent extraction followed by stripping
various metals in elevated concentrations, i.e. the so or by ion exchange followed by elution, and iii) metal
called acid mine drainage (AMD) is formed. When it is recovery - where in many cases electrowinning is applied.
not treated, the AMD can result in a considerable In the latter case use of membrane technologies to pre-
pollution to both soil and groundwater [1]. concentrate PLS is regarded recently as an way for
Membrane technologies have been and are being lowering the energy consumption, enhancing the recovery
studied for removing and concentrating different metals of valuable metals and ensuring high recovery of reagents
from AMD [2-5]. and fresh water [8].
Generally, flotation is most effectively carried out Lithium (Li) is a very important metal in the
with clean water. Changes in water quality are unwanted production of rechargeable batteries, ceramics and glass,
because this could affect the reagent regimes, finally as well as lubricating greases. It is used in metallurgy (as
resulting in compromise of the flotation performance. It is casting additive, flux and alloying element) and in many
known that water quality impacts the flotation results and other industries. Lithium can be extracted from either hard
the following negative effects can be observed: loss of rock minerals and brines. Salt brines represent the most
separation efficiency, loss of recovery, loss of concentrate abundant lithium sources. They comprise approximately
grade, contamination of products [6]. At the same time the 60% of all known lithium deposits [9]. In the recent 10-
minerals industry is being requested to save freshwater by 15 years extensive work has been carried out to improve
using recycled water and to minimize the discharge of

*
Corresponding author: marichim@mgu.bg

© The Authors, published by EDP Sciences. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
E3S Web of Conferences 280, 08016 (2021) https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202128008016
ICSF 2021

Li recovery from brines by applying membrane Table 1. Membrane processes classification based to the
technologies. driving force
Membrane technologies have been and are being
widely studied and applied to recover valuable metals Driving force Membrane process
from wastewater from mineral processing and extractive
metallurgy while at the same time ensuring high quality Microfiltration - MF, Ultrafiltration -
Pressure
of treated water. Even more, they may be applied also to UF, Nanofiltration - NF, Reverse
difference
leachates from mining waste. osmosis - RO
Figure 1 presents a summary of the possible Electrodialysis - ED, membrane
Electric
applications of membrane technologies in metals potential electrolysis - ME, (membrane) electro-
extraction. difference deionization -EDI, membrane
Membrane technologies have been existing for around electrophoresis
50 years, but they are still not widely used in the general Chemical Pervaporation, Per-traction, Dialysis ,
mining industry. That is why this paper aims at shedding potential Vapour permeation, Liquid
some light on the opportunities presented by the difference membranes - LM, Forward osmosis -
membrane processes for more profound use of resources FO
and sustainable production of metals, with an emphasis on Temperature
Membrane distillation - MD
the recent (3-4) years. difference

However, both MD and FO are evaluated as emerging

membrane-based technologies and still enough studies
and data are absent on their application [16].
Electrodialysis has been studied as a method for
recovering the reagents and metals from stripping
solutions [17], separating and recovering lithium from
brines [18-20] and even in the mineral extraction from
deep see water [21]. However these applications are still
in the study stage.
The most studied and used membrane techniques,
including in mining, mineral processing and extractive
metallurgy, are based on a pressure difference between
membrane feed and permeate sides - Table 2.
PDMPs performance generally is evaluated according
to the following characteristics:
• Trans-membrane flux (Jv) [m/s]:
Jv = Vp / Sm x tp) (1)
where: Vp - the volume of permeate [m3], Sm - the surface
of the membrane in contact with the flux [m2], tp - the time
Fig. 1. Possible applications of membrane technologies in [s]
metals extraction • Solute passage P

P = Cp / Cf (2)
2 Membrane technologies in brief
where Cf is the solute concentration in the feed and Cp -
Membranes are semi-permeable structures or films of its concentration in the permeate
materials that allow only certain species or substances to • Solute rejection (retention), in %
pass and prevent passage of others.
Different forces can drive substances to pass trough R = (1–P) x 100 = (1–Cp/Cf) x 100 (3)
membrane - Table 1 [10].
Although there are some studies devoted to • Selectivity coefficient
application of emulsion liquid membranes and supported
liquid membranes techniques for extraction and recovery (1/2) = P1 / P2 = [Cp/Cf]1 / [Cp/Cf]2 (4)
of metals from liquids (wastewater, waste liquids) the
When retentate is concentrated to a small volume, the
works on these applications are not so many and they are
volume concentration factor (VCF) is determined
dealing with specific cases of extraction [13, 14].
Membrane distillation that can operate at low VCF = Vf / Vr (5)
temperatures (60-90°C) enables the use of waste heat and
thus seems a promising technology [15]. where Vf is the volume of the feed at the start of filtration
Forward osmosis is considered also a promising and Vr is the retentate (concentrate) volume.
technology since it does not require a pressure • Recovery
application.

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Table 2. Pressure driven membrane processes (PDMPs) [1, 10-12]

Process Microfiltration Ultrafiltration Nanofiltration Reverse osmosis

Membrane material1 CC, PP, PS, PVDF, CC, PS, PVDF, CA, CA, PVDF, TFC CA, TFC
CA TFC2
Membrane structure porous, symmetric microporous, tight porous asymmetric, dense, semi- porous,
or asymmetric asymmetric thing film composite asymmetric
Retained diameter, m 0,1 -10 0,01 - 0,1 0,001 - 0,01 < 0,001
MWCO3, kilo Dalton 100 - 500 20 - 150 2 - 20 0,2 - 2
Operating pressure, bar <2 < 10 < 35 < 75
Separation mechanism size exclusion size exclusion combination of size solution diffusion4
exclusion and solution
diffusion
Permeate flux high high medium low
Usual module tubular, hollow tubular, hollow fiber, tubular, spiral wound, tubular, spiral wound,
configuration5 fiber spiral wound, plate-and- hollow fiber plate-and-frame
frame
Examples of rejection bacteria, micro- macromolecules - high molecular weight high and low
particles, fat, oil, proteins, pigments, compounds, polyvalent molecular weight
grease, colloids polysaccharides, ions compounds, poly- and
detergents, viruses monovalent ions
1
CC - ceramic, PP - polypropylene, PS - polysulfonic, PVDF - polyvinilidene fluoride, CA - cellulose acetate, TFC - thin film composite membrane
2
The RO and NF membrane presently of choice worldwide is the polyamide TFC. TFC membranes, composed of a strong asymmetric support
membrane and a thin dense polyamide toplayer, have a higher permeability and can be used at higher temperatures at a broader pH range, compared to
the others. Cellulose acetate membranes are chlorine resistant while TFC membranes have low resistance to chlorine.
3
Molecular weight cut off range
4
Solutes dissolve in the membrane material, then diffuse through it due to the concentration gradient. The separation is based on the differences in the
solubilities of the solutes in the membrane and the different diffusion rates.
5
There are four membrane configuration types for treatment systems: plate-and-frame (flat membranes sandwiched between membrane support plates
which are arranged in stacks), spiral wound (flat sheet membranes separated by spacer screens and wrapped around a central core of a perforated
collecting tube), hollow fiber, and tubular.

Recovery, % = mP,end / mF, ini (6) Most often lime is added to AMD to raise its pH and
precipitate the dissolved toxic harmful metals. However,
where - mP,end - permeate mass at the end of the the sludge produced by this process has no economic
experiment, mF, ini - feed mass at the beginning of the value and has to be disposed of, covering large areas of
experiment. land. Acid mine drainage can be effectively processed and
The permeate flux in membrane separation process, made satisfactory for discharge using membrane
which determines its productivity, depends on the technology.
properties of the membrane, properties of the feed Studies on membrane processes application for
solution, trans-membrane-pressure, solute mass transfer treating AMD commenced at the 90-ties of the previous
coefficient (which influences the concentration century with an emphasis mainly on RO.
polarization), membrane fouling. Probably one of the earliest applications of membrane
The main factors influencing the selectivity and technologies was at Cananea de Mexicana where a full-
permeability of PDMPs are the pressure applied over the scale RO - based plant was installed in 1997 to treat AMD
treated water (working pressure), the temperature and - with copper recovery directly from concentrate - thus the
acidity of the treated water, the concentration and nature process was paid back within 6 months [22].
of the salts dissolved in the treated water. NF and RO (single pass units) were applied
The concentration polarisation and the fouling are the successfully at the Kennecott Utah Copper's Bingham
main factors affecting membrane performance. Canyon Mine Water Treatment Plant, now property of
Concentration polarisation is the observed differential Rio Tinto Group, to treat AMD (pH 2,9 - 3,4, SO42- - 73,8
solute concentration between membrane surface and bulk g/L, Mg - 9,9 g/L, Al - 5,96 g/ L, and Ca, Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn
stream. It is reversibly influenced by operation - in the range of 0,150 - 0,599 g/L, TDS - 92 g/L) and
parameters. The fouling is formation of deposits on the contaminated groundwater. The solute retention for all
membrane surface. It is irreversibly influenced by pollutants was higher than 97 %. The main encountered
operation parameters. problem was gypsum scaling [23].
Zhong and co-authors tested commercial polyamide
3 Membrane technologies for treating ultra-low pressure reverse osmosis (ULPRO) and
nanofiltration (NF) membranes for their ability to remove
AMD and mine influenced water heavy metal ions from AMD. Rejections achieved were
The high concentrations of sulfate ions and metals in 97 % and 95 % respectively pointing at the possibility to
AMD pose a severe risk to the environment. recover metals from the concentrate obtained. In addition
ULPRO removed also a major part of the dissolved

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monovalent ions thus decreasing the total water flux and satisfactory solutes retention efficiency. The best
conductivity by 96% and rendering the treated water results were obtained with NF270 membrane at feed pH
suitable for irrigation purposes [24]. of 5,5 where the maximum water recovery rate was 60%.
Results from studies and applications of RO, ED, NF The estimated capital cost of the UF-NF unit at an effluent
and UF for the treatment of AMD and mine influenced volumetric flow rate of 15 m3/h was US$ 131250,00, and
water (MIW), carried out till 2008, are comprehensively the operational cost was 0,263 US$/m3 of effluent [31].
presented and discussed by Mortazavi [25]. A very recent study has been carried out at a pilot-
A group of scientists at Freiberg University of Mining scale level with real AMD in order to determine and
and Technology studied (2008 - 2010) the applicability of estimate the operating conditions for using a commercial
different RO and NF membranes for treating AMD. NF membrane (NF270) to recover water and concentrate
Experiments were carried out at two different pressures of copper, as well as to find how NF can be coupled with SX
20 and 30 bar and at two different concentration levels in for the selective copper recovery [32]. The water was
order to resemble the concentration range of actual AMD acidic (pH 3,5) with high conductivity (5510 S/cm) and
found in the mining industry. The results showed that NF high concentrations of some pollutants, in g/L: 4,67 SO42-
membranes (NF99, DK, GE) successfully treated AMD, , 0,53 Cu, 0,38 Al, 44,70 Zn, 72,0 Mn. The study has
the heavy metals rejection was > 98% at higher fluxes and proved that the combined NF-SX technology achieved a
at lower pressure (consequently energy consumption) high recovery of water and copper from AMD. Thus,
compared to RO. The DK membrane performed in the freshwater consumption can be reduced and wastewater
best way since it showed the highest rejection even at low treatment costs can be decreased.
studied pressure (20 bar) and high AMD concentration. Since UF works on low operating pressure
The treatment has also been successfully conducted on a (consequently energy consumption) and at high water
large scale in order to check its applicability at a recovery, studies have been carried out to use this
commercial scale [3, 26, 27]. membrane process to treat AMD and MIW. However, a
In 2010 the Interstate Technology and Regulatory means had to be found to modify the pollutants so that
Council (ITRC) at the Environmental Research Institute they could be retained by the larger pores of UF
of the States announced that any one of the pressure membranes. Here came to aid application of surfactants
driven membrane processes can be implemented to treat and polymers and micellar enhanced ultrafiltration
MIW, including surface and ground water [12]. (MEUF) and polymer enhanced ultrafiltration (PEUF)
According to ITRC the treatment goal(s) determine the were proposed. PEUF is based on use of water-soluble
process selection. The application of a given PDMPs polymer to complex metallic ions. The formed complexes
generally depends on the: a) water quality requirements possess a higher molecular weight than the MWCO of the
for the permeate (i.e., product water), b) location and membrane. The complex is retained by the UF membrane.
source of water needing treatment, c) availability of Further, the retentate can be treated to recover metallic
utilities, d) options to dispose concentrates (retentate), e) ions and polymeric agent for reuse. The polymers used
quality of the water to be treated. Actually RO was (polyacrylic acid, polyethyleneimine, diethylaminoethyl
successfully used to treat MIW rich in sulfates and TDS cellulose and humic acid) achieved selective separation
to achieve drinking water standards [28]. and high recovery of heavy metals with low energy
The EMalahleni water treatment plant (South Africa) requirements [33].
was a solution for treating the coal mining industry The MEUF is based on the use of a surfactant in the
influenced water in a reclamation project. AMD was feed stream of the UF process. Dissolved ions which are
collected from 3 mining sites, neutralized by lime addition intended to be separated are attracted by oppositely
which removed iron, magnesium and aluminium. After charged surfactant molecules. They attach to the surface
the clarification water was treated with UF and RO to of a micelle formed when the concentration of the
produce potable quality water. The membrane separation surfactant exceeds the critical micelle concentration. Thus
step was repeated 3 times to maximize water recovery and formed large ion-micelle complexes can be retained by
minimize the concentrate volume. The feed water the ultrafiltration membrane. Ions that are not attached to
contained mainly calcium, magnesium and sulphate, with the surface of a micelle can penetrate through the
a small concentration of monovalent ions (sodium, membrane pores because of their small size. A drawback
chloride and potassium), and iron, manganese and of MEUF is that it can cause secondary pollution to the
aluminium [2, 29]. environment if the used surfactants are leaked to the
Dow NF 270 polyamide thin film and a TriSep TS 80 permeate. That is why, biosurfactants have been
polyamide thin film nanofiltration membranes were developed [15]. MEUF was successfully applied at pilot
studied for their ability to remove and concentrate ionic level to remove Cd and Cu from phosphorous rich real
species from MIW in wide range of pH values of the wastewaters [34].
polluted water [30]. The study proved that NF can be Very recently a combination of FO and RO processes
successfully used to achieve metal recovery objectives was proposed for treatment of mining wastewater [5].
and meet discharge standards. Results from a pilot scale FO-RO (with a capacity of 1
A study was carried out with the aim to assess the m3/day) pointed that this process could offer reduction in
applicability of RO and NF to treat AMD from gold use of energy, chemicals, and piping infrastructure.
mines, as well as the main operational conditions. The
results pointed that the NF had a higher potential to treat
the AMD than the RO, since NF ensures higher permeate

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4 Membrane technologies for PLS permeate stream is processed to recover gold and the
concentration cyanide (concentrated by a membrane process from the
barren solution) can be returned to the leaching. Thus both
Mainly gold and copper mines have invested in membrane permeates and concentrates from the applied membrane
systems to concentrate their PLS [4]. processes provide added value.
In the early 90-ties of the previous century HW Studies have been conducted also on membrane
Process Technologies, Inc. installed at Freeport McMoran processes application to PLS from a pressure-oxidation
Phelps-Dodge Rod Mill El Paso one NF and two RO (POX) of refractory gold ores [38, 39]. POX represents a
systems to treat H2SO4-based Cu-bearing PLS from heap hydrometallurgical oxidation of concentrated ore pulp
leaching in order to increase the feed copper concentration under high pressure (20 bar) and temperature (135–200
o
to the SX/EW plant, reuse the permeate from the second C). During the pressure oxidation process, the sulfide in
RO system as rinse water, while the concentrate from the the host mineral matrix is oxidized by oxygen, thus
1st RO system is passed also through a NF system. The producing soluble metal sulfates and sulfuric acid. In this
NF concentrate was directed to copper refinery, while NF way, the gold originally occluded in the sulfide minerals
permeate was sent to Cu dissolving. In this way a Zero- is completely released, allowing further high gold
Liquid (waste)-Discharge was achieved [22]. recovery by cyanide leaching. POX is efficient process for
In 1999 the same company obtained an US patent for refractory gold ores but it generates a large volume of
method for separating gold and/or silver from copper or liquid effluents, characterized by high acidity and
other contaminant metals in which a NF membrane is substantial metal content, and some of metals (Cu, Co and
used to form a retentate containing most of the multivalent Ni) are of great economic value. The aim was to
metal cyanide complexes and a permeate, containing most concentrate metals, and recover acid and water by
of the precious metal cyanide complexes [35]. In next applying combination of UF, NF and RO. The UF process
stages the precious metal(s) can be recovered from the is used as a pretreatment to avoid presence of suspended
permeate and the other valuable but non-precious metals solids in the feed to NF system. NF membrane
- from the retentate where they present as multivalent concentrates Cu, Co and Ni. An average concentration
metal cyanide complexes. factor of 2 was observed for metals in the NF retentate.
Minera Yanacocha is the largest gold producer in This concentration was favorable to subsequent recovery
South America. Its mining and processing operations are processes of metals (Co, Ni and Cu). The NF permeate (a
in the Andes Mountains at height in the range 3500 - 4100 metals-free solution with a low concentration of acid) is
meters. The gold is extracted by heap leaching with passed to the RO stage. There the acid is concentrated in
diluted cyanide solution (30 - 50 mg/L free cyanide). RO retentate (with 2,5 times higher concentration of the
Seven RO modules are installed (initial installation in H2SO4 and low impurity content - totally 0,58 mg/L) and
2003) at Yanacocha complex (250 m3/h each one) and five could be recirculated to control acidity in the POX
excess water treatment plants, two carbon plants for process. The RO permeate was water with quality for
recovering precious metals, and two Merrill Crowe industrial reuse in the company. The best performance at
processing plants [4]. During the rainy season, the PLS is a pilot-scale operation was while operating at recovery
being diluted and RO plants are used to dewater the PLS rate of 90%, 40–50%, and 50% for UF, NF, and RO,
making the Merrill-Crowe gold extraction process more correspondingly. The total estimated cost of the proposed
effective. Additional RO plants are installed to remove the treatment was US$ 1,137/m3 of effluent, including the
cyanide and metals left and to allow the permeate water neutralisation of UF and NF concentrates. A long-term
to be discharged and the concentrate to be returned to the work in a mining company validated suitability of the
extraction process. At the same time chlorine proposed treatment scheme. The same working group
consumption (for cyanide destruction) is reduced by 75% conducted further studies to find the most chemically
and overall operating cost is 70% less than that of a stable membranes in order to increase the process
conventional precipitation plant [22]. sustainability [40]. Commercially available NF
Because of the harmful impact of copper-cyanide membranes (NF90, NF270, MPF34, DK, Duracid) and
complexes on the gold extraction process, the use of NF RO membranes (BW30, LP, TFC-HR, XN45, and SG)
for separating Au(CN)2- from Cu(CN)32- has been studied. were assessed in terms of key performance parameters.
Soldenhoff and co-authors reviewed some patented NF The DK (as NF) and SG (as RO) membrane showed the
processes for gold processing designed to ensure highest capability for application in POX effluent
separation of Au(CN)2- from Cu(CN)32- in copper-rich treatment.
cyanide solutions [36]. This separation can be realized by Application of membrane process has been studied
treating either the PLS from cyanide leaching operations and proposed also for recovering nickel from spent nickel
or the loaded eluate from activated carbon extraction. electrolyte after electrowinning of Ni from purified PLS
Treatment of copper-gold cyanide PLS from heap of the base metal refinery in the PGM cycle (Bushveld
leaching where it is fractionated into a small, 1/10th, Complex, South Africa) [41]. Energy costs limit the
volume copper concentrated stream and a large, 9/10th, recovery of nickel in the electrowinning unit to 50% thus
volume gold-bearing stream has been proposed [37]. The making the recycling of the spent nickel electrolyte
copper stream is processed further by sulfide-acid-re- significant for cost-effective nickel production. In the
neutralization-treatment to recover copper and return ''classical scheme" four units are necessary for nickel
cyanide back to the process. The gold-(or gold-silver) concentration and sending back to the cycle. They are
replaced by one NF unit. The retentate stream where

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nickel is concentrated is recycled back to the nickel its high rejection of Mg2+ (approximately 100 %), low
electrowinning cells together with the sodium sulphate to rejection of Li (only 15 %), its higher selectivity between
ensure the needed conductivity while the permeate is monovalent ions (40 %) obtained at lower operating
recycled back to the leaching circuit in order to reduce the pressure (below 15 bar) and its lower roughness showing
overall sulphuric acid consumption of the base metal decreased predisposition to fouling. However, the further
refinery. step aimed to separate from the obtained permeate Li+ and
Very recently a study has presented a promising Na+ by using the NF90 was not successful and dialysis at
process chain for the separation of Ge and Re from an zero pressure was used to ensure the separation. Other
acidic multicomponent PLS obtained by bioleaching [42]. authors also pointed that NF is suitable process for
The proposed treatment chain includes consecutively MF, separation of Li+ and Mg2+ from brines [46, 47].
NF, and RO. For the MF pretreatment rotating ceramic Membrane electrolysis combined with crystallization
and polymeric (MV020) membrane filters are proposed. is proposed as a new technology for lithium carbonate
Over 99% of the leached sludge particles are retained and production from lithium-rich brines [44, 48, 49]. In the
can be recycled for bioleaching as leaching bacteria are first stage brine is introduced in a membrane electrolyzer
still present. In the further step the sterile solution is where anodic and cathodic departments are separated by
passed to NF system. With NF99HF it is possible to anion exchange membrane. Water reduction increases the
remove all cations (Co2+, Cu2+, Fe3+, Zn2+) at retention ≥ pH of the catholyte, and there Mg2+ and Ca2+, migrated
99% and Mo at retention > 97%. Concentrate is sent to the due to the applied voltage, are removed as Mg(OH)2 and
refining stage while the permeate stream is transferred to Ca(OH)2. In the second stage brine, from which Mg2+ and
the next RO step (with RO90 membrane). There the Ge is Ca2+ are removed, is introduced in the middle
concentrated in the retentate while Re passes to permeate. compartment of a three-compartment water electrolyzer.
Both high tech elements can be further extracted from the Anodic and cathodic compartments are separated from the
corresponding streams by solvent extraction or middle compartment by anion-exchange (AEM) and
adsorption. cation-exchange (CEM) membranes correspondingly.
Monovalent cations (left in the brine after the first stage)
migrate from the middle compartment through a cation
5 Membrane technologies in obtaining exchange membrane to the cathodic compartment where
lithium from brines water electrolysis leads to alkalinisation. It is found that
under the experimental conditions applied, the ionic
According to some estimates, nowadays 2/3 of the migration rate across the CEM decreased in the order Na+
worldwide produced lithium is extracted from brines. This > K+ > Li+. A side-crystallizer is attached to the cathodic
technology evaporates normally half a million litres of compartment and Na+ is recovered as NaHCO3 by
brine per ton of lithium carbonate. The process is introduction of CO2 in the system. At heating the
chemicals intensive, extremely slow, and delivers large bicarbonate solution, the bicarbonate is converted to
volumes of waste [43]. Methods have been searched for carbonate solid samples. Na2CO3 with a purity of 99.5%
to speed the extraction and mitigate its environmental of was obtained from real brine samples. Thus the solution
impact, including recovering at least some part of the is depleted in Na+ ions and it is more suitable for Li2CO3
water in brine as pure water. recovery in a successive stage. This solution is introduced
Brines are highly saline solutions, containing typically (in the 3rd stage) into the middle of another three-
large amounts of Na+, and lower concentrations of Li+, K+, compartment water electrolyzer, similar to the one applied
Mg2+, and Ca2+. The equivalent anions generally are in the 2nd stage. Since the water is deprived of Na+ ions,
mainly Cl− with minor amounts of SO42−, HCO3− and mainly Li+ ions pass to the cathodic compartment, where,
borates. Lithium concentration is low (in the range 0,3 - due to the alkalization caused by the electrolysis and
1,5 % ), concentrations of the other metals are high, and introduction of CO2, Li2CO3 (with a purity of 93,8 wt. %)
the chemical properties of the presenting Na+ and K+ are is precipitated in a side-crystallizer, attached to the
similar to those of Li+. Consequently efforts to directly cathodic compartment. The method proposed recovers
precipitate Li+ salts from brine lead also to precipitation fresh water as a by-product (around 90 % of the initial
of large amounts of Na+ and K+ salts [44]. In addition, volume).
presence of Mg in high concentrations is also detrimental, More on the advantages and challenges of the
since it possesses greater affinity to lime as compared to membrane-based technologies applied to the lithium
lithium, leading to inefficiency in lime precipitation of Li recovery from brines till the middle of 2019 can be found
and also hinders the ED separation of Li [9]. in the work of Li and coauthors [50].
Consequently, it is essential to find process for Studies development in that area hinted to the idea that
efficient separation and recovery of lithium from brine an integrated membrane separation process could be a
sources. NF and ME are the membrane processes mainly potent alternative to conventional Li recovery methods.
used in this application. An integrated membrane process combining NF and MD
NF and low pressure reverse osmosis (LPRO) have was studied for the enrichment of Li from simulated salt
been studied for their ability to separate lithium from salt lake brine [9]. NF90 and NF270 NF membranes were
lake brines with an emphasis on Mg2+/Li+ separation [45]. used in experiments. It has been found that under
The results pointed that NF90 membrane was more optimum operating conditions, the Mg/Li molar ratio
efficient for Li+ separation from a diluted brine because of changed from 10 to 0,19 when NF90 was used, and from
its higher hydraulic permeability, lower critical pressure, 10 to 2,1 at NF270 use. The achieved concentration of Li

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from brine was 77 and 56% for NF90 and NF270 In order to find a sustainable solution for fresh-water
membranes respectively. Following NF treatments, the demand in mining sectors, MD was proposed to reclaim
separated Li could be further concentrated (by up to 80 %) POX effluent [54]. Different operational conditions were
by means of direct contact MD system. Park and co- studies and under the optimum ones (PTFE membrane
authors [51] also confirmed the ability of the combination with spacer, feed temperature - 60 ◦C, recirculation flow
NF - MD to recover Li from low concentration lithium rate - 0,3 L/ min), the average distillate flux was 6,82 L/m2
brine, as they stresses, at ''one-tenth of capital cost, h and a permeate recovery rate was 33,91% at retention
process time, and foot-print of the conventional process''. rates for metals > 95,7% and for the acid > 99,9%. The
The cost can be decreased further by using the waste heat system was working 240 days without any deterioration
from the industrial plants and solar energy. of parameters, generating a permeate that can be used
Very recently a comprehensive technology for directly as recycled water in the plant. Since the
preparation of Li2CO3, has been proposed [52]. It includes temperature of the POX effluent is in the range 50 - 80 ◦C,
electrochemical intercalation-deintercalation, the effluent can be introduced directly into MD system
nanofiltration, reverse osmosis, evaporation, and thus decreasing the energy demand for the effluent
precipitation. In the beginning the electrochemical processing.
intercalation-deintercalation method is used to ensure In general, RO is the major membrane process used by
maximum separation of magnesium and lithium, i.e. to the developed countries to treat wastewater streams from
obtain a low mass ratio Mg/Li. The Mg/Li ratio decreased mine sites, especially with the aim to achieve water
from 58,5 in the brine to 0,93 in the produced lithium- quality meeting the legislation requirements permitting
containing anolyte. Further, multivalent ions (e.g., Mg2+, water discharge in natural water bodies. Most often the
Ca2+, and SO42--) are removed from the obtained anolyte technology is applied for water polishing after other
via the NF method. Then NF permeate is concentrated by treatment processes and before discharge to the
RO. The next step uses evaporation to increase further the environment. For example Oceana Gold - Waihi (New
lithium concentration. Finally Li2CO3 is precipitated by Zeeland) applies RO since 2008 to remove pollutants,
Na2CO3 addition. By the proposed technology a direct such as TDS, Se and As left after treating the wastewater
recovery of lithium from the high Mg/Li brine to the by a conventional wastewater treatment plant using
produced Li2CO3 can come to 68,7%. When recycling is chemical precipitation and clarification [22]. The water is
ensured for the most of the solutions in the system, the purified to a level of purity, far in excess of that required
total recovery of lithium will be higher than 85%. by regulators [55].
Many mines in Australia are using the RO technology
as a post-treatment process for removing heavy metals
6 Membrane technologies for recovering and other toxic compounds from their wastewaters before
reagents, metals and water from mining water discharge to the environment [56-58]. However,
waste streams membrane fouling appears as one of the biggest problems
when RO is used in a harsh environment like as mining
Treatment of in-plant process effluents and wastewater operations.
streams are presented in this section. A study evaluated the performance of RO plant as a
Membrane processes have been applied for treating in- wastewater post-treatment process in mining operations in
plant effluents in order to regenerate reagents and/or to Victoria, Australia [56]. The data analysis points that the
separate valuable materials. An example is application of RO treatment significantly improves the quality of the
ED for recovery of HCl, zinc and iron contained in final water before it is being discharged to surface waters.
effluents from chloride hydrometallurgy [17]. The waste Considering average rejection efficiency for the entire
stream was with high concentration of hydrochloric acid evaluated period (01.01.2015 - 27.11.2018), the
and of metal anionic and cationic chloro-complexes. concentrations of antimony, arsenic, nickel, zinc and iron
Initially selective membrane-based solvent extraction step were reduced by 95 %, 66 %, 82 %, 48 % and 10 %,
was applied to separate in raffinate cationic iron from the respectively in the RO permeate compared to the feed
stripping solution that contained the HCl together with water. The turbidity and TDS decreased by 85 % and 96
anionic species of zinc. The stripping solution was passed %. However, the sporadic inefficiency of the pre-
to ED system where Zn was concentrated in concentrate treatment system, led up to serious failures in RO plant,
and the latter was suitable for Zn electrowinning. HCl was resulting in a non-compliance with local discharge licence
recovered in diluate to be re-used in the leaching process. in some days. The conclusion was that since RO
Another example is recycling of H2SO4 from raffinate, membranes are very sensitive to fouling, availability of a
generated during copper ore hydrometallurgical reliable and extensive pre-treatment system is the most
processing, by use of bipolar membrane electrodialysis critical factor to guarantee good performance and high
(BMED) system [53]. The raffinate is highly acidic and durability of membranes.
contains Fe, Zn, Cu, Ni, Cr, Cd, As in high concentrations. Legislative measures forced not only gold and copper
The experiments showed that 85,9% of SO42- that present mining companies but also coal-mining enterprises to
in the raffinate could be recovered by the formation of search for solutions to minimize their saline wastewater.
H2SO4. The removal rates of other pollutants were, in %: A study was carried out aimed at evaluating the
iron - 99,3, zinc - 99,1, copper - 99,0, nickel 84,9%, performance of an integrated FO - RO system with three
chromium - 70,6, cadmium - 95,8%, and arsenic - 94,8. different actual coal mine waters from Australia,
containing different concentrations of sulphates and silica

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E3S Web of Conferences 280, 08016 (2021) https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202128008016
ICSF 2021

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