Lithium Hydroxide Anhydrous (Ultra Dry Lithium Hydroxide)

By Bee Chems

A speciality derivative of lithium hydroxide, Lithium hydroxide anhydrous is produced using inert atmosphere and controlled calcination. Lithium Hydroxide Anhydrous is a crystalline lithium source, soluble in water, for uses compatible with higher (basic) pH environments. Produced with min. 98% LiOH content, it rapidly absorbs moisture and carbon dioxide. Bee Chems manufactures lithium hydroxide in the anhydrous, ultra-dry form for pharmaceutical, thermal and battery-electrolyte applications. Produced under an inert atmosphere by controlled calcination at a minimum 98% LiOH content, it is supplied in moisture-tight packing that protects the material from the atmospheric moisture and carbon dioxide it rapidly absorbs. Lithium hydroxide is one of the more demanding alkali chemicals to manufacture and store well. Its value in a process usually depends less on headline assay than on what has not got into it — carbonate picked up from the air, or moisture absorbed between packing and use. Both are controlled at source in our plant rather than corrected later. As a lithium hydroxide manufacturer based in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, we supply industrial quantities against COA, with packing and documentation configured for your process. What Is Lithium Hydroxide? Lithium hydroxide is an inorganic base — the hydroxide of lithium, and the first member of the alkali-metal hydroxide series. It is supplied as a white crystalline solid that dissolves in water to give a strongly alkaline solution, and is mildly soluble in ethanol. Two properties define how it behaves in practice, and both follow from the small size of the lithium ion: It is the least soluble and least basic of the alkali hydroxides. Where sodium and potassium hydroxide dissolve almost without limit, lithium hydroxide reaches roughly 12.8 g per 100 mL at 20 °C. This makes it the correct choice where a lithium ion is required but an aggressively caustic solution is not. It is strongly hygroscopic and reacts with carbon dioxide. Left open to the air, lithium hydroxide takes up water vapour and then reacts with atmospheric CO2 to form lithium carbonate. This is not a defect — it is the basis of one of the compound’s most important applications — but it governs how the material must be packed, stored and handled. Bee Chems supplies the anhydrous (ultra dry) grade, in which water of crystallisation has been driven off by controlled calcination under an inert atmosphere. This is the grade specified where any water content would interfere with the process. Lithium Hydroxide Formula and Chemical Properties: The lithium hydroxide formula is LiOH. One lithium atom, one oxygen, one hydrogen, giving a molecular weight of 23.95 g/mol — the lowest of any alkali hydroxide, and the reason lithium hydroxide delivers more chemistry per kilogram than its sodium or potassium equivalents. - Chemical formula: LiOH - Molecular weight: 23.95 g/mol - CAS number: 1310-65-2 - EC number: 215-183-4 - Appearance: White crystalline solid - Assay: min. 98% LiOH - Solubility in water (20 °C): ~12.8 g/100 mL - Solubility in ethanol: Slight - Melting point: 462 °C - Decomposition: To lithium oxide (Li2O) above ~900 °C - Density: ~1.46 g/cm3 - pH (1% solution): Strongly alkaline, ~11 - Hygroscopicity: Rapidly absorbs moisture and carbon dioxide - UN number: UN2680 - Hazard class: 8 (corrosive) The Lithium Hydroxide and CO2 Reaction: Lithium hydroxide absorbs carbon dioxide according to: 2 LiOH + CO2 → Li2CO3 + H2O. On a stoichiometric basis, 47.9 g of lithium hydroxide takes up 44 g of carbon dioxide — roughly 0.92 kg of CO2 per kg of LiOH, the highest mass efficiency of any common chemical absorbent. That single figure explains both the storage discipline this product demands and its use in confined-atmosphere life support. Lithium Hydroxide vs Sodium Hydroxide and Potassium Hydroxide: - Lithium hydroxide: Formula LiOH; Molecular weight 23.95; CAS number 1310-65-2; Solubility in water (20 °C) ~12.8 g/100 mL; Relative basicity Weakest; CO2 capacity per kg Highest - Sodium hydroxide: Formula NaOH; Molecular weight 40.00; CAS number 1310-73-2; Solubility in water (20 °C) ~111 g/100 mL; Relative basicity Intermediate; CO2 capacity per kg Lower - Potassium hydroxide: Formula KOH; Molecular weight 56.11; CAS number 1310-58-3; Solubility in water (20 °C) ~121 g/100 mL; Relative basicity Stronger; CO2 capacity per kg Lower Where the process needs the lithium ion specifically — or the highest CO2 uptake per kilogram carried — lithium hydroxide is not interchangeable with the cheaper alkalis. How Bee Chems Produces Ultra Dry Lithium Hydroxide: The anhydrous grade is made by controlled calcination under an inert atmosphere. Two elements of that matter to a buyer: Controlled calcination. Water of crystallisation is driven off within a managed temperature profile. Overheating drives decomposition toward lithium oxide and depresses assay; underheating leaves residual moisture in a product sold specifically for being dry. Inert atmosphere. Calcining in air would expose freshly dried, highly reactive material to atmospheric CO2 at exactly the moment it is most able to absorb it, converting surface material to lithium carbonate. Excluding air during production is what keeps carbonate low in the finished product. Because the material is produced in our own plant rather than imported and repacked, assay and carbonate content are controlled at source — not inherited from someone else’s process and discovered on arrival. If you are working to a defined internal specification, send it to us and we will confirm our material against it line by line. Lithium Hydroxide Uses and Applications: Storage-Battery Electrolyte. Lithium hydroxide is used as an electrolyte additive in alkaline storage batteries. Added to potassium hydroxide electrolyte in nickel-iron and nickel-cadmium cells, it improves capacity retention and extends cycle life by moderating degradation at the positive electrode. The quantities are small relative to the electrolyte volume, which places the emphasis firmly on purity — trace metals introduced with the additive can undo the benefit. Heat Transfer Medium. Lithium hydroxide’s thermal characteristics make it suitable as a heat transfer medium in specialised thermal systems, including thermal-storage applications where the material’s heat capacity and stable behaviour over a wide temperature range are the deciding factors. Pharmaceutical Intermediates. Lithium hydroxide is used in the manufacture of lithium salts for drug formulations, notably those used in the treatment of bipolar disorder. Pharmaceutical synthesis routes are unforgiving of alkali-metal and heavy-metal contamination, so material destined for this use is qualified on its impurity profile rather than assay alone. It is also used more broadly in organic synthesis as a selective base, particularly in ester hydrolysis, where its comparatively mild basicity is an advantage over sodium or potassium hydroxide. Carbon Dioxide Absorption. Following 2 LiOH + CO2 → Li2CO3 + H2O, lithium hydroxide absorbs carbon dioxide at approximately 0.92 kg per kg — a mass efficiency no other common absorbent matches. Where the binding constraint is weight rather than cost, this makes LiOH the scrubbing medium of choice for confined atmospheres. The same chemistry is why this product must be kept sealed. Material left open does not simply get damp; it converts progressively and irreversibly to lithium carbonate, and assay falls accordingly. Packing, Storage and Handling: Packing: 10 kg and 25 kg heat-sealed poly/foil bags in UN drums. The poly/foil construction is not incidental. A foil laminate provides a genuine moisture and gas barrier where plain polythene does not, and heat-sealing removes the closure as a leak path. The UN drum then provides the mechanical and regulatory protection required for a Class 8 corrosive in transit. Storage Conditions: Keep containers tightly closed at all times; Store cool, dry and well ventilated; Keep away from acids, moisture and CO2-rich atmospheres; Do not store alongside incompatible chemicals; Reseal immediately after part-use — exposed material converts progressively to lithium carbonate, lowering assay; Where possible, decant under dry conditions and return the balance to sealed packing at once. Safety and Handling: Lithium hydroxide is corrosive and causes severe skin burns and eye damage. Dust is irritating to the respiratory tract. Chemical-resistant gloves, goggles or face shield, and protective clothing; Adequate ventilation; respiratory protection where dust is generated; Eyewash and safety shower accessible at the point of use; On skin or eye contact, flush with water for at least 15 minutes and seek medical attention; Collect spills dry where possible; do not raise dust; do not flush to drain. A full MSDS/SDS is supplied with every consignment and is available on request. Why Buy Lithium Hydroxide From Bee Chems: Manufacturer, not a trader — produced in our own plant at Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, so assay and carbonate are controlled at source; Minimum 98% LiOH, supplied against batch COA; Inert-atmosphere production with controlled calcination, keeping carbonate low in the finished product; Moisture-tight heat-sealed poly/foil in UN drums, suitable for export; Full lithium salts range from a single supplier, on one set of commercial terms; Technical support on specification matching and grade selection.