Technical presentation spotlight: Phoebe Whattoff
Phoebe Whattoff (Minviro Australia) is an experienced life cycle assessment practitioner providing qualitative and quantitative cradle-to-cradle life cycle assessments (LCA) according to the ISO14040:2006, 14044:2006 and ISO 14067 standards for measuring the environmental impacts of critical metals.
She caught up with the AusIMM team for a quick chat about what delegates can expect from her upcoming presentation at Critical Minerals 2024.
Presentation title
Environmental and Cost Comparison of Different Spodumene Concentration Processes
From the abstract:
The world needs more raw materials for the growing sustainable economy, for lithium it is expected that the demand will increase by 400% by 2050. Few know the variability in the environmental impacts and costs of existing and emerging raw material production assets, and it is expected that when using the same technology for lithium production, costs and environmental impacts will only increase as the highest quality resources are currently being mined.
FLSmidth (FLS) has been looking into alternative methods for spodumene concentrate production as part of the lithium shake-up project…
Phoebe Whattoff in her own words
1. Why are you excited to present at this year’s Critical Minerals Conference?
It's of utmost importance that we produce critical minerals using sustainable practices. I am excited to present the great potential for producing spodumene concentrate whilst reducing carbon dioxide emissions and water use of producing spodumene concentrate and lowering costs.
2. Why should delegates see your technical presentation?
The study presented will provide the audience with an overview of different conventional and novel spodumene concentrate production processes and allow them to witness which one produces the best results.
3. Why is it important to present on your topic?
The environmental impact and cost of lithium production will only increase over time. Finding solutions to address this is critical for ensuring an energy transition built upon minerals produced in the most sustainable way possible.