Expansion of Lithium Carbonate Plant, Argentina
Orocobre Limited
At an altitude of 4000 m above sea level in the Jujuy province of Argentina, the Sales de Jujuy S.A. plant at Salar de Olaroz produces lithium carbonate for export to global markets.
Demand continues to grow for this valuable resource, which is used for making batteries as well as ceramics, glass and chemicals manufacturing.
At Salar de Olaroz, lithium brine is extracted from underground bore wells, fed into evaporation ponds, where brine is concentrated until reaching a desired level of lithium. Then, concentrated brine is sent to the chemical plant where it is filtered and dried, resulting in lithium carbonate.
GHD’s role includes:
- Test works to establish design and technological assessment parameter for different processing plant components, with the participation of different equipment vendors and manufacturers
- Detailed engineering design drawing on a variety of disciplines
- Early design and procurement of long lead items.
Tourian FEED, Teesside, UK
Tourian Renewables Limited (TRL)
GHD has completed the Front End Engineering Design (FEED) for an innovative project in Teesside, UK, that will make valuable products such as fuels, oils or chemicals from waste plastic.
The project, developed to date by Tourian Renewables Limited (TRL), targets end of life plastics that have no further useful recycling value and will contribute to the goal of reducing the amount of plastic currently being disposed of in landfill sites.
Local GHD experience in supercritical steam and combustion systems, as well as electrical, civil and mechanical engineering expertise, was coupled with process plant design knowledge from GHD’s oil and gas team in Australia.
The project team deployed specialist technical process design knowledge alongside multi-disciplinary engineering capability to develop a robust FEED for the new facility.
This pioneering project will be the first of its kind in the UK whist the application of technology to achieve the range of end products from the waste plastics feedstock will be a world-wide first. TRL is asset managed by Armstrong Energy, a leading investor and developer of low carbon and other ‘circular economy’ projects.