At Albemarle, we believe the best innovations in our extraction and production processes come when we prioritize our quest for safe and more sustainable approaches that are better for people and planet.
INNOVATION
Innovation from mine to market — for generations to come.
Our innovation mindset allows for increasingly safer advancements in the application, production and safe handling of our lithium and bromine resources. It also spurs advancements in adjacent materials and chemistries from initiators in airbags to security imaging. Innovation propels our growth, generates better solutions for the customers and industries we serve and contributes to a more resilient world for people and planet.
- Flame Retardants
50+ years of advanced flame-retardant polymer solutions that help keep cars, devices, home and aircraft fire safe. - Medical Devices & Equipment
Albemarle innovation is found in medical devices from pacemakers to portable oxygen, in faster pharmaceutical production and in advancements like emergency escape breathing equipment. - Battery Materials
From recycled material for cathodes to advances in ultra-thin lithium metal anodes and electrolyte advances for solid state solutions, Albemarle is driven to propel the global electric market innovation forward in ways that benefit all.
PIONEERS IN PRODUCTION
Precision and Complexity Driven by Scientific Excellence
Sustainable Energy and Water
Innovation in energy efficiency across our sites allows us to maximize productivity without sacrificing sustainability.
- 80% of our total energy consumption is passive solar energy, used in the Salar de Atacama and Silver Peak production facilities to concentrate brine.
- Innovative process technologies such as heat recovery and integration systems allow us to optimize energy efficiency.
- Thermal evaporator technology allows us to add production capacity while reducing freshwater usage.
- We are actively leveraging membrane processes in innovative ways to reduce fresh water consumption in our operations.
Driving Innovation in Extraction
Maximizing the recovery of all our extracted resources minimizes waste and opens new end-markets that can help support local economies.
- Byproducts from the extraction of our resources are used in innovative ways such as dust suppression that reduces waste and freshwater use or reused in industries like cement production.
- Innovation is key to our aim of reducing co-products and tailings overall. We also focus on reducing impurities in the products so they can be more sustainably sold into viable markets or reused as part of our own internal processes.
Technological Innovation
Albemarle is a leader in the use of closed-loop artificial intelligence to drive process improvements in quality, efficiency and safety.
- In some of our extraction and purification sites, we have coupled advanced process control technology with novel online analytical approaches to optimize on a real-time basis. This not only manages yields and reduces waste, but also benefits operator workload.