Lithium 锂

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium ; http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%94%82; http://baike.baidu.com/view/20681.htm

Lithium mine production (2011) and reserves in tonnes^[30]

Argentina	3,200	850,000
Australia	9,260	970,000
Brazil	160	64,000
Canada (2010)	480	180,000
Chile	12,600	7,500,000
People's Republic of China	5,200	3,500,000
Portugal	820	10,000
Zimbabwe	470	23,000

Production

Satellite images of the Salar del Hombre Muerto, Argentina (left), and Uyuni, Bolivia (right), salt flats are rich in lithium. The lithium-rich brine is concentrated by pumping it into solar evaporation ponds (visible in the left image).

Since the end of World War II lithium production has greatly increased. The metal is separated from other elements in igneous minerals such as those above. Lithium salts are extracted from the water of mineral springs, brine pools and brine deposits. The metal is produced electrolytically from a mixture of fused lithium chloride and potassium chloride. In 1998 it was about 95 US$ / kg (or 43 US$/pound).^[60]

There are widespread hopes of using lithium ion batteries in electric vehicles, but one study concluded that "realistically achievable lithium carbonate production will be sufficient for only a small fraction of future PHEV and EV global market requirements", that "demand from the portable electronics sector will absorb much of the planned production increases in the next decade", and that "mass production of lithium carbonate is not environmentally sound, it will cause irreparable ecological damage to ecosystems that should be protected and that LiIon propulsion is incompatible with the notion of the 'Green Car'".^[61]

Deposits of lithium are found in South America throughout the Andes mountain chain. Chile is the leading lithium producer, followed by Argentina. Both countries recover the lithium from brine pools. In the United States lithium is recovered from brine pools in Nevada.^[62] However, half the world's known reserves are located in Bolivia, a nation sitting along the central eastern slope of the Andes. In 2009 Bolivia is negotiating with Japanese, French, and Korean firms to begin extraction.^[63] According to the US Geological Survey, Bolivia's Uyuni Desert has 5.4 million tonnes of lithium.^[63][64] China may emerge as a significant producer of brine-source lithium carbonate around 2010. There is potential production of up to 55,000 tonnes per year if projects in Qinghai province andTibet proceed.^[61]

Worldwide reserves of lithium are estimated as 13 million tonnes.^[30] Using the battery efficiency figure of 400 g of lithium per kWh,^[65] this gives a total maximum lithium battery capacity of 52 billion kWh which, assuming it is used exclusively for car batteries, is enough for approximately 2 billion cars with a 24 kWh battery (like a Nissan Leaf ^[66]).

电池工业

因为锂的原子量很小，只有6.9g•mol⁻¹，因此用锂作阳极的电池具有很高的能量密度。锂也能够制造低于室温或高温下使用的电池^[2]。

低于室温的电池，通常使用有机溶剂作为电解质，其中添加一些无机盐增加导电性，常用无机盐包括高氯酸锂、六氟磷酸锂、六氟砷酸锂和硫化锂等。二次锂电池中正极材料也为含锂化合物，如锂钴氧化物、锂镍氧化物、锂锰氧化物、锂铁氧化物等等，以及其几元化合物。二次锂电池中负极材料，也与锂的作用明显。

电池阳极是锂，阴极常用金属氯化物。例如锂-氯化银电池的电池反应为：

Li + AgCl = LiCl + Ag

高温下的电池，通常使用熔融的无机盐作为电解质，因此必须在该盐的熔点以上方可使用。例如：

2Li + Cl₂ = 2LiCl