Undip and University of Aberdeen develop lithium recovery technology

Researchers from Universitas Diponegoro (Undip) in Semarang and the University of Aberdeen (UoA) in Scotland are developing membrane technology and adsorbent materials for lithium recovery from subsurface brines.

One of the Undip researchers, Prof. Dr.rer.nat. Ir. Heru Susanto, said in Semarang on Friday that the research is important amid the world’s increasing need for critical minerals for high-tech industries, green energy, and defence.

From Undip, Ir. Titik Istirokhatun is also involved in the research, while the University of Aberdeen side is carried out by Dr. Amin Sharifi and his team.

According to him, the research is part of an international collaboration established in 2024 between Undip and the University of Aberdeen.

The collaboration is funded through the International Science Partnerships Fund (ISPF) scheme under a project titled “Developing Membrane Technology and Adsorbents for Lithium Recovery from Subsurface Brines: Investigating Diffusion and Adsorption Process with Membrane”.

“We are studying how the diffusion and adsorption processes take place so that increasingly selective and effective materials can be developed to extract the required elements,” he said.

Recovery of critical minerals and rare earth metals is the process of reclaiming valuable mineral elements through extraction, separation, and purification.

The sources, he said, can come from primary sources as well as secondary sources such as mining tailings and electronic waste through an “urban mining” approach.

Critical minerals and rare earth metals are strategic global commodities, such as neodymium, which is a rare earth metal, while lithium and nickel are critical minerals.

He explained that these materials are needed for various modern products, ranging from mobile phones, electric vehicle batteries, green energy technology, to defence technology.

Recovery technology, he said, is important because these resources are non-renewable.

“Going forward, we cannot only think about finding new mineral sources. We must also have technological independence to reclaim valuable elements from sources that have not been optimally utilised so far, including secondary sources,” he said.