As reported by SRC, the Company’s proprietary design process was successful in recovering up to 83.7% lithium (Li) and concentrating 461 ppm Li from a 71 ppm representative sample of formation brine originating from the Sturgeon Lake oilfield.
“The results of laboratory testing by SRC provide third-party validation of our proprietary design process and its ability to rapidly separate lithium and other valuable minerals from wastewater brine,” stated MGX President and CEO Jared Lazerson. “We have made many advancements since this original process design, but this validation is important and we will continue to rely on SRC for independent testing and improvements of both active and newly developed passive filtration technologies.”
Excerpts from the SRC Summary Report- Metallurgical Tests and Executive Summary- are outlined verbatim below. Note that certain portions of the report have been redacted to protect proprietary information and data:
Table 1. Assay Results of the as Received Brine Sample
Element K Mg Na Cl Ca SO 2-4 Sr Br Li
Assay (ppm) 4212 2903 60747 116632 24753 186 1080 334 71
SRC independently carried out multi-stage evaporation tests following the patent-pending design process as provided by MGX. As reported by SRC in the executive summary:
1. It was not feasible to remove 90% of the water in the primary evaporation of the Formation brine because the formation of the jel-like material made the filtration impossible. The maximum water evaporation was 66% of the feed brine mass before the jel formation. Approximately 97% of Na, 26% of K, 35% of Ca and 29% of Mg were precipitated. The recovery of Li and Sr was 75.6% and 68.8%, respectively.
2. The modified processes including magnesium precipitation by lime followed by the primary evaporation to precipitate NaCl and the secondary evaporation to precipitate CaCl2 and concentrate lithium.
3. The Mg removal was very effective and more than 99.99% of Mg was removed. The residue Mg in the brine was less than 0.1 ppm. The lithium recovery was 84.1% and the Sr recovery was 80.1%.
4. In the primary evaporation process, 67% of the feed brine mass was evaporated as water and more than 96% of Na was removed as NaCl. There were almost no Li or Sr loss in this process. Li was concentrated from 60 ppm to 321 ppm.
5. In the secondary evaporation process, 26% of the feed brine mass was evaporated as water and 12% of Ca was removed as CaCl2. The lithium recovery was 94.1% and the Sr recovery was 94.6%. The sample turned to a jel-like material after further evaporation to remove 40% of the brine mass as water.
6. In the whole process, the estimated water evaporated was 72% of the total feed brine mass. More than 99.99% of Mg, 99% of Na, 45% of K and 25% of Ca were precipitated from the brine. The overall recovery was 83.7% for Li and 77.2% for Sr. Lithium was concentrated to 461 ppm from 71 ppm. However, the impurity level, especially Ca, was still very high and further removal of Ca through evaporation is not feasible.
SRC has provided the Company with several recommendations to remove Ca impurity levels. The full report will be filed on SEDAR within 45 days.
Qualified Person
The technical portions of this press release were prepared and reviewed by Andris Kikauka (P. Geo.), Vice President of Exploration for MGX Minerals. Mr. Kikauka is a non-independent Qualified Person within the meaning of National Instrument (N.I.) 43-101 Standards.
MGX may decide to advance its petrolithium projects into production without first establishing mineral resources supported by an independent technical report or completing a feasibility study. A production decision without the benefit of a technical report independently establishing mineral resources or reserves and any feasibility study demonstrating economic and technical viability creates increased uncertainty and heightens economic and technical risks of failure. Historically, such projects have a much higher risk of economic or technical failure.
About SRC
The Saskatchewan Research Council (SRC) is one of Canada’s leading providers of applied research, development and demonstration (RD&D) and technology commercialization. With more than 375 employees, $70 million in annual revenue and over 69 years of RD&D experience, SRC provides products and services to its 1,500 clients in 20 countries around the world.
About MGX Minerals
MGX Minerals is a diversified Canadian mining company engaged in the development of large-scale industrial mineral portfolios in western Canada and the United States. The Company operates lithium, magnesium and silicon projects throughout British Columbia and Alberta as well as petrolithium exploration in Utah.
Contact Information
Jared Lazerson
President & CEO
Telephone: 1.604.681.7735
Web: www.mgxminerals.com
Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking information or forward-looking statements (collectively “forward-looking information”) within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking information is typically identified by words such as: “believe”, “expect”, “anticipate”, “intend”, “estimate”, “postulate” and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking information provided by the Company is not a guarantee of future results or performance, and that actual results may differ materially from those in forward-looking information as a result of various factors. The reader is referred to the Company’s public filings for a more complete discussion of such risk factors and their potential effects which may be accessed through the Company’s profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.
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