Lithium is central to the clean energy transition and electric vehicle batteries, yet its supply chain faces technical, financial and environmental challenges. The blog by ESSS explains how simulation, combining the Discrete Element Method (DEM) and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), aims to reduce physical prototypes and operational risks:
- Wet ore milling: CFD-DEM models aim to quantify energy lost in impacts, addressing inefficiency and wear.
- Electrode slurries: Simulation aims to map fluid flow, adjust viscosity and design coating nozzles, limiting particle clumps and defects.
- Calendering: Models aim to show how particles deform under pressure, supporting balanced porosity.
These simulations help analyse manufacturing challenges and assess how process changes may affect energy consumption, material quality and equipment performance across lithium processing and battery production.
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