Lithium (Li) is the lightest metal in nature and is silvery white. China has abundant lithium resources, of which only the salt lake lithium reserves in the Qaidam Basin of Qinghai Lake account for about one- third of the world's salt lake resources .
Lithium can be alloyed with a variety of elements for the atomic energy, aerospace, aerospace, and welding industries. Commercial lithium is mainly used in lithium batteries, aluminum electrolysis, glass, ceramics, absorption air conditioners and greases. The application of lithium salt in the electrolytic aluminum industry has become one of the major consumer markets for lithium products. The application of lithium in controlled nuclear fusion reactors is the largest application of lithium. Lithium salt as the electrolyte of the molten carbonate battery is expected to become the second generation of fuel cells following the phosphate fuel cell. Different specifications and types of lithium batteries have led to a significant increase in lithium consumption. The most worthy of mention is the use of rechargeable lithium batteries, which are expected to be used in the field of electric vehicles ( EV ). In the electric vehicle, its advanced or not lies in its power system, and lithium ion has become the first choice in the field of battery chemistry. In recent years, the use of lithium in aerospace, nuclear power generation, battery energy and other new materials has also been increasing. It has become a very important metal in modern industrial production and is called “the 21st century energy metalâ€.
As the application of lithium continues to expand, its international market space is constantly expanding. It is estimated that only the American Society for the aluminum industry in the 21st century aluminum-lithium alloy annual demand will reach 600,000 t, need to consume lithium metal 15000 t. The world's major producers of metallic lithium include the United States, Russia, Canada, Germany, Australia, and Chile. At present, the total output is only about 2,500 tons . Among them, the output of the two U.S. companies with world monopoly status is 900t and 500t respectively ; the annual production capacity of Russia is only about 300t . These supply sources are far from meeting market demand.
Since China's reform and opening up, the domestic market for lithium metal and related products has been expanding at a faster rate. At present, only lithium-ion battery production is growing at an annual rate of over 20 %. In 2006 . Lithium prices have increased by more than 200 % under the circumstances that the demand for aluminum-magnesium-lithium alloys has increased, the amount of lithium bromide coolants has increased substantially, and the amount of lithium used in ceramics, electronics, and glass industries has grown rapidly . Therefore, the price of lithium and market prospects are generally optimistic. China is a big country with lithium resources, and its proven reserves of lithium resources ranks second in the world. However, China's lithium salt enterprises compared with similar foreign companies. Not only is the scale small, the metal recycling rate is low, the production cost is high, the level of equipment and automation are behind, and most companies have a single product structure and few high-end products. Lithium companies in China should take advantage of the combination of resources, market distribution, and the degree of industrial linkages, and adopt strong-strong alliances, mergers, and equity participation, and form a large-scale group company integrating production, supply, and sales. Optimize resource preparation in a scaled manner. Improve industrial concentration and enhance the market competitiveness of enterprises.