The renewable revolution runs on lithium. The metal is a key component in the batteries that power electric vehicles and store energy to stabilize electric grids as the makeup of global energy mixes increasingly relies on variable energy sources like wind and solar power. But while lithium has, in many ways, become synonymous with “clean energy” extraction of the metal is associated with a heap of negative environmental impacts, not to mention sticky geopolitics. For these overlapping reasons, researchers have been looking into…
