Integrated, sustainable process for extracting purified lithium solution from brines of different concentrations

Abstract

The present invention claims an integrated and sustainable process for extracting a purified lithium solution from brines of varying concentrations from the Atacama Salt Flat, which are processed jointly and continuously regardless of their individual composition, thereby improving processing yield and capacity, along with reducing water consumption, resulting in a highly purified lithium chloride brine. The invention is characterized by comprising: - a brine storage and distribution system; - feeding three brine streams (Q1, Q2, Q3) to the brine storage and distribution system; - at least two brine treatment modes (T1, T2); - defining the treatment mode for each brine stream (Q1, Q2, Q3); and - incorporating one or more brine streams (Q1, Q2, Q3) into the defined treatment mode.- to treat the brine stream in a set of operations that make up the respective treatment modality; and - to obtain a purified lithium chloride solution.