LIVENT Lithium Carbonates for Building Materials

Livent is one of the largest lithium producers globally with the majority of the demand going into electric vehicles (EV), batteries, and refined high-tech electronics. Battery and medical treatments consume the largest share of the lithium supply worldwide followed by building materials, greases, and other industrial applications.
 

Lithium salts, including hydroxide and carbonate salts, provide superior strength and endurance to building and construction materials such as concrete, glass, and ceramics. They accelerate setting time in concrete, reduce melting temperatures in glass, and increase flexural strength in ceramic products. They provide unique characteristics and physical properties, which makes them ideal for use in a broad spectrum of industrial applications, from space suits to submarines, and from lithium greases to air filtration systems.

Lithium carbonates are the first choice for use in building materials and cementitious systems to adjust and accelerate the setting time. LIFETECH® admixtures are one of the best performance lithium carbonates in the market due to their fine particle size and narrow particle size distribution. LIFETECH® lithium carbonates provide controllable, uniform, and predictable rates of reaction when used in cementitious systems such as high-alumina cement (HAC) and alumina-portland cement blends (HAC/PC).

LIFETECH® Lithium Carbonates provide an accelerating effect by increasing the hydration rate of cement products at an early age. Cement products made with LIFETECH® Superfines or Ultrafines exhibit immediate compressive strength and accelerated setting time that can be controlled by adjusting the addition level of the lithium carbonate.

Lithium Carbonate Technical Grade is also used in cementitious systems and building materials when a narrow particle size distribution is not required.

Lithium Carbonates from Livent provide a uniform set throughout the mix, which is not achievable with competitive materials or broader particle size lithium carbonates. They contain no sodium or potassium alkalis, which are known to promote alkali-silica reaction (ASR) in cementitious systems that contains reactive silica minerals. The products will also help you suppress the ASR reaction in concrete.

The dosage of LIFETECH® Lithium Carbonate Superfines and Ultrafines depends on the type of cementitious system and the mix design factor.

LIFETECH® Lithium Carbonate Superfines or Ultrafines at 0.01-0.05 is typically a sufficient level of use for pure high-alumina cement (HAC) systems. An additional dose is generally required when used in HAC/PC mixtures. A higher dosage is also needed when the HAC level is decreased in alumina-portland cement blends (HAC/PC).

Example: 
LifeTech Superfines, or Ultrafines at 0.02%, achieved the desired set time in pure HAC systems while an additional 0.5-1.0% was required in higher in cement blends containing 10% (HAC).