Demand for lithium is growing, as it’s a crucial mineral used to make batteries, electric vehicles and energy storage technologies, and could even help build a greener future. But mining for it is not so environmentally friendly.
That’s why Texas A&M University researchers are taking steps to capture lithium in a greener and surprising way — with small, fish-like robots.
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Fish-like nanorobots coming out of Texas
Thanks to a $1 million award from the U.S. Department of Energy, the university launched a project aimed at developing a new approach to lithium recovery. How? By using fish-like swimming nanorobots that the university says capture lithium ions from seawater.
The project is part of a federal initiative supporting innovative technologies to strengthen the nation’s mineral supply chain, Texas A&M said in a news article about the research.
According to the article, Texas A&M is looking at seawater as a potential alternative source for lithium. Current lithium production relies on land-based mining and underground brine extraction.
“Unlike traditional mining that digs up land or pumps brine from underground and requires massive amounts of energy, these autonomous micro/nanorobots move freely through seawater to harvest lithium with virtually zero infrastructure footprint,” said Jingjing Qiu, mechanical engineering professor and one of the lead researchers.
How does it work? Researchers say specialized micro- and nanoparticles will move through seawater, activated by external forces like light, and are recovered using magnetic fields.
While in the water, moving like fish, the tiny robots actively seek and capture lithium ions.
“Seawater lithium recovery could provide a stable alternative source to address the growing global demand for lithium,” Qiu said. “Our goal is to develop a technology that supports a more reliable domestic lithium supply chain while reducing the environmental footprint associated with traditional extraction methods.”
Research is ongoing
Researchers at the university say they will focus on improving the small robot’s performance, testing lithium recovery efficiency and developing methods to bring the technology to a larger scale.
The university says several challenges remain, including separating lithium from other minerals in the seawater and ensuring the robots’ durability in marine environments.
All this, while also continuing to evaluate the environmental impacts any future robot deployments may have.
The DOE’s critical mineral projects
Texas A&M’s research is one of 19 critical mineral projects the Energy Department is funding to advance technologies and strengthen the U.S. clean energy supply chain.
The other projects include ones coming out of the University of Nevada, Georgia Tech, Colorado School of Mines, DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory and more.
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