COLLOCATING A LARGE-SCALE DISSOCIATING REACTOR NEAR A GEOTHERMAL ENERGY SOURCE FOR PRODUCING GREEN LITHIUM FROM BRINES

Techniques for refining valuable materials from aqueous sources, along with corresponding apparatuses, are disclosed. The disclosed techniques enable "green" and "conflict-free" acquisition of critical minerals. These advantages are impactful in applications including refinement of rare materials such as certain metals, especially metals necessary for production of energy storage devices required to advance environmental goals, such as in the Paris climate agreement. The inventive concepts include economically viable approaches to refinement, as well as economically viable apparatuses. In some approaches, valuable materials such as metals are refined from salts obtained from aqueous sources. Power required to refine materials is provided by renewable energy sources. Real world implementations involve co-locating a dissociative reactor with a geothermal energy plant near an aquifer with salt(s) therein. Refined minerals are produced on site. Practice of the disclosed techniques reduce or eliminate many negative environmental impacts such as those incurred by legacy mining based techniques.