Solarevaporated

Solarevaporated is a term used to describe materials or products that have been concentrated or formed through solar evaporation, a process in which solar heat drives the evaporation of a solvent, usually water, from a saline solution. In industrial contexts, solarevaporated refers to the state of salts, minerals, or brines after exposure to solar ponds or shallow evaporation basins, where sunlight and heat cause evaporation and crystallization or concentration.

In practice, a brine or solution is placed in open basins situated in arid or semi-arid regions with high insolation. Over weeks or months, water evaporates, raising salinity until salts precipitate or a crust forms. The liquid in the evaporating ponds may become highly concentrated and is then processed further to separate desired minerals. The term solarevaporated can describe both the concentrated brine and the crystallized product, depending on the context.

Common solarevaporated products include table salt (halite), potash salts, and various evaporite minerals such as gypsum or borates. In lithium mining, solar evaporation ponds are used to concentrate lithium-bearing brines before chemical processing to extract lithium carbonate or metal.

Solar evaporation has a long history in salt production, with extensive operations in desert coastlines and arid inland basins. Modern industries occur in regions such as the Atacama Desert, southwestern United States, western Australia, and parts of the Middle East.

Limitations of solarevaporated production include dependence on climate, land use, and potential brine disposal challenges. Environmental concerns include habitat disruption in pond basins and salinity buildup in surrounding soils.

See also: solar evaporation ponds, desalination, saltworks, evaporite minerals.