lithium

in the Salar de Atacama salt flat, lithium exists as a mineral salt suspended in underground reservoirs of brine. to get sufficient concentration of lithium, the brine is pumped into evaporation ponds and then goes through repeated cycles of solar evaporation. that’s where the colours come from, the blues, the greens, the yellow, the deepening shades signifying the higher concentrations being reached for the final collection of lithium salts that are then processed further into the metal that will go into your smartphone

photography: Catherine Hyland
text: Colin Pantall
first spotted on: Maekan, It’s Nice That
originally published in: Bloomberg Markets

Chris Hatherill12 October 20181 Comment