EIC-backed BrinE-loop started on 1 October 2026 with almost 3.99 million euros in EU support to develop an electrochemical system linking desalination-brine treatment with selective lithium recovery from lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery black mass. The project plans to use chemistry derived from brine treatment to process battery waste, connecting two waste streams to recover useful materials and reduce demand for purchased reagents.
The system combines monovalent-selective electrodialysis, redox-flow desalination, an electrochemical lithium-ion pump and a chlor-alkali process. Electrodialysis separates brine into different ionic streams, while redox-flow desalination targets magnesium removal. The lithium-ion pump is designed to selectively capture lithium.
A stream from the treatment process will feed the chlor-alkali operation, which is intended to generate reagents internally and reduce reliance on purchased chemicals. BrinE-loop plans to demonstrate the use of this desalination-derived chemistry to recover lithium selectively from LFP battery black mass.
LFP batteries contain no nickel or cobalt, so their recycling economics depend more heavily on efficient lithium and iron/phosphate recovery and keeping processing costs low. The project links concentrated desalination brine and battery black mass so that one waste stream can help process the other.
Integrating the electrochemical steps presents an engineering challenge because each has its own membrane, energy, selectivity and fouling constraints. The closed-loop system will be attractive only if the combined process is simpler or cheaper than treating brine and battery waste separately.
Energy consumption and membrane lifetime will be central variables in the project’s eventual techno-economic case. Its timeline runs from October 2026 to September 2030. If technically successful, BrinE-loop could improve water-treatment economics and the material efficiency of LFP recycling.
The project is presented as part of Europe’s critical-material technology pipeline. Lithium supply is increasingly being pursued through geothermal fluids, battery waste, industrial brines and other secondary resources alongside conventional mining. Selective recovery with low reagent use and modular deployment may complement primary lithium extraction.
