Robert F. ServiceBooming electric vehicle sales have spurred a growing demand for lithium. But the light metal, which is essential for making power-packed rechargeable batteries, isn’t abundant.
Now, researchers report a major step toward tapping a virtually limitless lithium supply: pulling it straight out of seawater.“This represents substantial progress” for the field, says Jang Wook Choi, a chemical engineer at Seoul National University who was not involved with the work.
He adds that the approach might also prove useful for reclaiming lithium from used batteries.Lithium is prized for rechargeables because it stores more energy by weight than other battery materials.