2025 - Sustainable Industrial Processing Summit
SIPS2025 Volume 2. Inufusa Intl. Symp. / Oxidative Stress and Technological Innovations in Medicine
| Editors: | F. Kongoli, K. Abe, W. Cho, K. Fukui, S. Hirano, D. Joseph, T. Yoshikawa, J.R. Ribas, N. Tran |
| Publisher: | Flogen Star OUTREACH |
| Publication Year: | 2025 |
| Pages: | 282 pages |
| ISBN: | 978-1-998384-40-2 (CD) |
| ISSN: | 2291-1227 (Metals and Materials Processing in a Clean Environment Series) |
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GEOLOGICAL ENVIRONMENT OF LITHIUM AND ITS USE AS A THERAPEUTIC AGENT IN PSYCHIATRY
Francisco Souza Assis1; Dwight Rodrigues Soares1; Lazaro Farias1; Andriê Antunes1;1FEDERAL INSTITUTE OF PARAIBA, Campina Grande, Brazil;
Type of Paper: Regular
Id Paper: 222
Topic: 65
Abstract:
This paper addresses the role of lithium both in its geological origins and in its therapeutic use in psychiatry, highlighting the implications of its extraction and medical application. Under standard conditions it is the lightest solid element on the periodic table. Like all alkali metals, lithium is highly reactive and flammable and is stored in mineral oil. Lithium is widely found in the Earth's crust, but it does not occur as a specific mineral, that is, with a chemical composition and defined crystal structure, allowing its extraction in isolation in mineral deposits. In Brazil, it is always a component that forms the crystal structure of lithiniferous pegmatite minerals, such as spodumene (the only economically exploitable for lithium extraction), petalite, amblygonite, and elbaite, related to endogenous processes. In the exogenous environment, it occurs as a constituent of salt flats in Andean countries such as Argentina, Chile, and Bolivia. Its geological exploration is related to specific mining processes, with concentration by electrolysis. Lithium has many applications, from lubricating grease, alloy additions, in particular for Aluminum and Magnesium alloys, to glazes for ceramics, and finally Lithium batteries. In the field of psychiatry, lithium has established itself as an essential drug for the treatment of bipolar disorder, acting as a mood stabilizer by modulating neurotransmitters and neuronal processes. Thus, the present study seeks not only to highlight the geological processes involved in lithium extraction, but also to discuss the therapeutic contributions and clinical challenges associated with its use.