Characterization of Lithium and Other Critical Minerals of Smackover Formation, Louisiana
Initiative: Lithium
Project Lead: Idaho National Laboratory (INL)
Project Sub: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Project Timeline: 10/14/2024 - Ongoing
Part of a joint funding opportunity with the Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office (AMMTO), INL’s Characterization of Lithium and Other Critical Minerals of Smackover Formation, Louisiana project is investigating the largely unexplored lithium (Li) potential in the deep subsurface brines of northern Louisiana's Smackover Known Geothermal Resource Area (KGRA). The research is exploring sources of Li concentration within the late-Jurassic KGRA and assessing overall resource potential, the feasibility of sustained Li production, and potential environmental implications of production (e.g., water use).
To do so, the project team is collecting existing data on Li and other critical minerals concentrations in brine; generating new data through sampling of deep wells; and combining geological, hydrological, geochemical, and modeling results. Better understanding of the region’s critical materials resources and use could help support direct extraction facilities for critical minerals and economically boost the local community and its workforce, while increasing the United States’ domestic production of an essential critical mineral.
Learn more about the Office of Geothermal’s work in lithium.
More About the Project:
- Interactive Lithium Storymap
- Characterizing the Geothermal Lithium Resource at the Salton Sea (Report)
- Can Geothermal Energy Solve the Lithium Shortfall? (Blog)