China launches industrial-scale plant to harvest rubidium and caesium from lithium waste
A new production line in Jiangxi province can extract over 98% of caesium and 95% of rubidium from lithium-processing waste, creating a domestic supply of these critical metals.
China has commissioned a demonstration plant in Jiangxi province that recovers rubidium and caesium from the waste generated during lithium extraction. Developed by the Institute of Process Engineering under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the 17-tower system can retrieve more than 98% of caesium and over 95% of rubidium, yielding carbonates of each metal at purities exceeding 99.9%. With an annual capacity of 500 tonnes, the line runs continuously and was built together with Jiangxi Ganfeng Lithium and other partners.
The process, based on differential counter-current extraction, uses 40% less extractant and occupies less than half the space of conventional tanks. By turning low-grade lithium waste into a new source of these strategic metals, the technology could strengthen China's supply chain for aerospace, quantum computing, and emerging energy applications.
Why it matters
The plant turns lithium waste into a domestic source of rare metals vital for high-tech industries, reducing reliance on imports.
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