Preparation and characterization of lithium ion sieves embedded in a hydroxyethyl cellulose cryogel for the continuous recovery of lithium from brine and seawater

This study proposes lithium ion sieves (LIS) embedded in a cross-linked hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC) cryogel for the effective adsorption recovery Li + from brine and seawater resources. The Li + adsorption process conformed well with the Langmuir isotherm model, and the maximum Li + adsorption capacities are calculated to be 42.57–54.23 mg/(g of LIS). In addition, the Li + adsorption capacities of the LIS-HEC cryogels from artificial brine and seawater are 10.64 and 2.46 mg/(g of LIS), respectively. In addition, the Li + selectivity of the LIS-HEC cryogels against other cations is consistent that of LIS powder. Moreover, monolithic columns of LIS-HEC cryogels exhibit good mechanical stability, small back pressure, and the periods required to complete the acid treatment, adsorption, and desorption processes during continuous operation are greatly decreased in comparison with the performances of other composite absorbents. These results demonstrate the potential of the proposed LIS-HEC cryogels for recovering Li + from liquid lithium resources.