GEA and POSCO: a synergy of engineering solutions towards clean energy sources.
GEA CEO Stefan Klebert (middle) with GEA’s & POSCO’s teams for the project.
Lithium batteries are the backbone of the global energetical transformation that aims to reduce the use of fossil fuels to the bare minimum. A colossal effort to diminish greenhouse gases emissions and get a grip on global warming -one of the main challenges of our time.
The right fit for the task.
Battery cells amount for a 10 to 30 percent of an EV’s cost and the compounds needed for their production demand state-of-the-art crystallization and/or evaporation technology to be obtained.
Since 1902 GEA has been building a solid reputation in the field of industrial Evaporation and Crystallization, with engineering teams that delivering both innovation and outstanding performance that today translates into a long list of select customers around the world, including POSCO Group -the fourth largest steel producer in the world and now also successfully active in the field of lithium batteries production.
Just in the last decade, GEA has supplied over 12 lithium salt production plants worldwide -five of them to POSCO Group (Demo plant Posco LX, Posco Conventional, Posco Argentina LS and LHM) and has carried out over 120 test works only related to lithium products and processes.
Bringing a lithium hydroxide production plant to life.
“Together with POSCO we foster a culture of co-creation and innovation, exploring new opportunities and pushing boundaries to stay ahead of the market."
Timo Saemisch
Vice President Crystallization at GEA
Writing a unique story in the production of Lithium salts.
The joint journey of GEA and POSCO goes way back to when POSCO first approached GEA looking for the best supplier of a robust and reliable crystallization plant to produce battery grade LiOH.H2O.
After close work with POSCO to understand their specific requirements, GEA was able to tailor-made a Crystallization plant that met POSCO’s exact needs. In 2017 a 200 kg/h demonstration plant was installed in South Korea, allowing POSCO’s team not only to scale-up but also to get acquainted with the flawless processes offered by GEA and our way of working.
“GEA values long-term relationships and local contacts, this is how we turned into POSCO’s trusted partner not only during the implementation of our plants but also in the long run, supporting POSCO’s growth and future success."
Benjamin Jung
Senior Director Sales Crystallization at GEA
Once the process was proven, GEA faced another challenge: how to mobilize the right teams to cover POSCO’s needs, since this meant to execute three projects almost simultaneously. Each of them, producing material for approximately 800 000 battery packs.
As if that were not enough of a challenge, GEA had to sort out the raw materials shortage and components delivery delays caused by the regrettable conflict in Ukraine. Here, the transparent communication, close contacts and the trust between POSCO and GEA allowed to set the right organization around the obstacles to deliver high-level performance and quality, always involving POSCO in every step of the decision-making process.
GEA & POSCO professionals working together as a team.
GEA technologies at the forefront.
When it comes to lithium battery components production, GEA technologies are highly reliable and efficient. Our tailor-made LHM Crystallization plants are designed for maximum uptime and performance while minimizing waste and energy consumption -this means our plants are specifically engineered to deliver consistent high-quality LHM crystals that meet our customers’ precise specifications every time.
The process GEA developed from scratch for POSCO in Argentina is unique. It started with laboratory tests to identify the main physical properties of the involved components, corrosion tests to identify the best construction material and the development of a process solution that got validated at GEA’s semi-industrial pilot facility.
As a result, a complete development and scale-up of the adequate evaporation, stripping and crystallization process to withstand specific corrosive process conditions, combined with different benchmark GEA technologies, such as the falling film evaporator, forced circulation crystallizers and absorption columns operating with mechanical vapor recompression to minimize the energy consumption was delivered to POSCO.
GEA and POSCO’s cooperation goes beyond lithium salts, as the development works towards the crystallization of NaHCO3 in relation with Carbon Capture processes in Korea and the set-up of a Digital Twin in Argentina to help troubleshoot PLC programs, reduce commissioning time and provide an interesting live tool for operator training are in full bloom.
We can certainly say that the GEA-POSCO partnership is based on shared success and hard work. We take pride in celebrating milestones and achievements together as we work towards mutual growth.
Engineering for a Better World.
Along with our expertise, that ensures only experienced professionals with in-depth knowledge support and guide GEA customers through their projects, and a comprehensive technical support that translates into swift commissioning and minimized start-up time; at GEA we strive to develop environmentally friendly processes with the smallest footprint possible.
Our plants are designed with our Mechanical Vapor Recompression solution that uses the energy from vapor steam to compress and heat the incoming process fluid, minimizing the need for external energy sources. This translates into an energy-saving plant with low carbon emissions and a more sustainable operation.
GEA processes incorporate water-saving technologies that minimize water usage, prioritize efficient water management practices and drastically reduce the discharge of wastewater into the environment, always living up to our promise of Engineering for a Better World.
DID YOU KNOW?
Lithium and other rare metals can be recovered from end-of-life batteries and hydrometallurgy is the most common method to retrieve and separate metals contained in the black mass lithium extraction. First, the hydrometallurgical recycling process involves leaching of black mass in an acid a chemical precipitation methodology that allows scarce minerals to be solubilized and separated from carbon.
Afterwards, the metals in solution are either precipitated by pH variation or extracted from each other using organic solvents. Hydrometallurgical methods use primarily aqueous solutions to extract and separate metals from LIBs. Once metals have been extracted into solution, they are precipitated crystallized selectively as battery grade salts using pH variation or extracted using organic solvents containing extractants. This way, they can be recovered from the black mass and delivered to battery manufacturers for reuse.
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