Metal processing
Battery Material Purification
Purification of intermediate and final product streams is an area where advanced solvent-impregnated resins Lewatit ® TP 272 and Lewatit® VP OC 1026 play a pivotal role in meeting the stringent battery-grade material specifications of nickel and cobalt salt. Our special production process allows the extracting agent to be homogeneously distributed within the resin, leading to fast exchange kinetics and high operating capacities. Additionally, Lewatit ® MDS TP 220 is well suited for the separation of nickel and cobalt.
Chelating ion exchange resins Lewatit® MonoPlus TP 208 and Lewatit® MDS TP 208 are used for the purification of lithium brines from residual quantities of contaminants such as calcium and magnesium. Our unique ion exchange resin functionalization chemistry enables the selective binding of specific metal ions from feed streams, e.g., hardness/impurity removal in lithium processing, which considerably facilitates their further processing.
The sustainable extraction of high-purity lithium, copper,nickel, cobalt, and platinum group metals that are suitable for use in batteries is essential for advancing the transition to electric vehicles. The use of Lewatit® ion exchange resins leads to highly efficient refining processes that can be used for the production of high-performance batteries with a good carbon footprint and water balance. Large quantities of water are used in ore processing – from cleaning the raw ores to isolating the pure metals. Obtaining and, if applicable, separating the metal ions from this water is indispensable for both economical and ecological reasons.
Lewatit® ion exchangers offer the fascinating possibility of binding certain metal ions selectively, such as precious, platinum, or rare earth metals. Secondary constituents can also be separated, such as zinc from copper electrolytes or cobalt from nickel or copper salt solutions. In this process, the metal ions are removed from the aqueous solution and accumulated on the ion exchange resin, which greatly facilitates their further processing – or disposal, in the case of wastewater flows.
With the aid of special ion exchange resins, metals can be obtained from ore leachates by means of direct extraction. The Lewatit® grades specially adapted for applications in hydrometallurgy possess chelating functional groups that very efficiently and highly selectively bind specific metal ions. Thus, using resin-in-pulp (RIP) technology, for example, metals like copper, nickel, and also cobalt can be extracted more efficiently and ecologically than with conventional methods. Similarly, ion exchangers for the final polishing of nickel and cobalt concentrates are used to produce highpurity cobalt and nickel. The metals are constituent parts of active materials for cell cathodes of the lithium-ion batteries.
Chelating Resins
| Product | Product Matrix | Ionic Form | Bead Size (mm): Monodisperse: (MD, mean value) Heterodisperse: (HD, share > 90%) | Total Capacity (eq/l) min. (H Form) | Volume Change (%) max. | Water Retention (%) | Applications |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lewatit®MDS TP 208 | Styrene/DVB macroporous | Na+ | MD: 0.38 (+/– 0.04) | 2.8 | –35 (Na+→H+) | 59–65 | Lithium brine purification |
| Lewatit®MDS TP 220 | Styrene/DVB macroporous | H2SO4 salt | MD: 0.38 (+/– 0.04) | 36 g/l Cu capacity | –30 (del. → free base) | 50–58 | Nickel / cobalt separation |
| Lewatit®MDS TP 260 | Styrene/DVB macroporous | Na+ | MD: 0.40 (+/– 0.04) | 3.0 | –35 (Na+→H+) | 63 | Lithium, nickel, and cobalt concentrate purification |
| Lewatit® MK 51 | Styrene/DVB macroporous | H2SO4 salt | 0.315 – 1.6 | 0.8 | – | 45–51 | Lithium brine purification |
| Lewatit® MonoPlus TP 207 | Styrene/DVB macroporous | Na+ | MD: 0.61 (+/– 0.05) | 2.0 | –25 (Na+→H+) | 55–60 | Base metal recovery, uranium recovery from hypersaline solutions, heavy metal removal from groundwater |
| Lewatit® MonoPlus TP 208 | Styrene/DVB macroporous | Na+ | MD: 0.65 (+/– 0.05) | 2.5 | –30 (Na+→H+) | 58–64 | Lithium brine purification |
| Lewatit® MonoPlus TP 209 XL | Styrene/DVB macroporous | Na+ | MD: 0.85 (+/– 0.05) | 2.4 | –35 (Na+→H+) | 48–53 | Base metal recovery from pulps |
| Lewatit® MonoPlus TP 214 | Styrene/DVB macroporous | H+ | MD: 0.55 (+/– 0.05) | 110 g/l Ag capacity | – | 55–60 | Mercury removal, cadmium removal from nickel and cobalt concentrates, precious metal recovery |
| Lewatit® MonoPlus TP 220 | Styrene/DVB macroporous | H2SO4 salt | MD: 0.62 (+/– 0.05) | 29 g/l Cu capacity | –23 (del. → free base) | 50–55 | Nickel / cobalt separation |
| Lewatit® MonoPlus TP 260 | Styrene/DVB macroporous | Na+ | MD: 0.63 (+/– 0.05) | 2.4 | –35 (Na+→H+) | 58–62 | Lithium, nickel, and cobalt concentrate purification |
| Lewatit® TP 308 | Polyacrylate macroporous | H+ | 0.315–1.6 | 4.3 | 22 (Cl→OH-) | 45–50 | Lithium brine purification |
Strong Base Anion Exchange Resins
| Product | Product Matrix | Ionic Form | Bead Size (mm): Monodisperse: (MD, mean value) Heterodisperse: (HD, share > 90%) | Total Capacity (eq/l) min. (H Form) | Volume Change (%) max. | Water Retention (%) | Applications |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lewatit® K 6362 | Styrene/DVB gel | Cl | MD: 0.62(+/– 0.05) | 1.3 | 22 (Cl→OH) | 48–55 | Recovery of uranium and anionic metal complexes |
| Lewatit® K 6367 | Styrene/DVB gel | Cl | MD: 0.92 (+/– 0.05) | 1.2 | 20 (Cl→OH) | 49–54 | Resin in pulp |
| Lewatit® K 6462 | Styrene/DVB gel | Cl | MD: 0.59 (+/– 0.05) | 1.4 | 20 (Cl→OH) | 45–50 | Resin in pulp |
Weak Base Anion Exchange Resins
| Product | Product Matrix | Ionic Form | Bead Size (mm): Monodisperse: (MD, mean value) Heterodisperse: (HD, share > 90%) | Total Capacity (eq/l) min. (H Form) | Volume Change (%) max. | Water Retention (%) | Applications |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lewatit® A 365 | Polyacrylate macroporous | FB | HD: 0.4–1.6 | 3.4 | 25 (FB→Cl) | 43–54 | Uranium recovery from saline solutions |
| Lewatit® MP 62 WS | Styrene/DVB macroporous | FB | HD: 0.4–1.25 | 1.7 | 45 (FB→Cl) | 50–55 | Metal recovery from hydrochloric acid, vanadium and molybdenum recovery |
| Lewatit® MP 62 WS Eco | Styrene/DVB macroporous | FB | HD: 0.4–1.25 | 1.7 | 45 (FB→Cl) | 50–55 | Metal recovery from hydrochloric acid, vanadium and molybdenum recovery |
Adsorber & Solvent-impregnated Resins
| Product | Product Matrix | Ionic Form | Bead Size (mm): Monodisperse:(MD, mean value) Heterodisperse: (HD, share > 90%) | Total Capacity (eq/l) min. (H Form) | Volume Change (%) max. | Water Retention (%) | Applications |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lewatit® TP 272 | Styrene/DVB macroporous | H+ | HD: 0.3–1.6 | 12.5 g/l Zn capacity | – | – | Nickel/cobalt separation |
| Lewatit® VP OC 1026 | Styrene/DVB macroporous | H+ | HD: 0.3–1.6 | 13 g/l Zn capacity | – | 28–33 | Nickel/cobalt |
Checkout full information in Brochure Lewatit Product Guide 2025
